Thursday Theology: How much is enough?

So much for the theory that increasing income leads to increasing happiness:

Krueger and colleagues also looked at data from a Bureau of Labor Statistics survey to see how people in different income brackets spent their time. What they found was that those with higher incomes had more chores and less fun. They devoted more time to working, commuting, childcare, and shopping and were under more stress and tension than those in lower income brackets. According to government statistics, men who make more than $100,000 a year spend 19.9 percent of their time on passive leisure activities such as watching television and socializing. Meanwhile, men whose annual income were less than $20,000 spent more than 34 percent of their time dedicated to passive leisure.

Funny how we bemoan the loss of a sense of community or family when, at the same time, people commute 2-4 hours a day, often working overtime at a job they can't stand, just to chase a larger paycheck. Certainly there are some people for whom life holds hard choices, but the simple truth is we often sacrifice more than we're willing to admit just to chase a buck or two. Even funnier is how often studies like the one above do little but confirm the ancient wisdom contined in an often ridiculed book:

Then I realized that it is good and proper for a man to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in his toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given him—for this is his lot. Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work—this is a gift of God. He seldom reflects on the days of his life, because God keeps him occupied with gladness of heart.

When we're unable to enjoy and appreciate what we have, we tend to seek more material possessions without stopping to think what we give up in return: our time, our energy, even our family and friends. Were it not for striving for McMansions, Nintendos, Land Rovers, and mail-order catalogs, how many married adults might have time and energy for each other and for their children? How many people might have more time for community activities that enrich everyone's lives without the need for Uncle Sam's paternal hand? Money is a useful tool, but a dangerous master and truly, the love of it is a root of many evils.

"What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit
his soul?"