Should I want to be a millionaire?

  • Thread starter Thread starter GRod
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
G

GRod

Guest
Hello brothers and sisters.

I love to learn about Catholicism, i am a practicing Catholic and try to obey the church to the T…

Anyways this is my cross…my problem is im addicted to marijuana…i dropped out of college and didnt return due to it…weed has caused me many problems but for the sake of this conversation i will point to one area it affects me drasticlly and that is financially…i spend alot of money on weed and i havent tried to find better jobs or improve myself. I just feel comfortable with where im at.

Recently someone i know who got a really great paying gig making 250k a year and he is the same age as me. Its a solid deal that will make them that much for the rest of their lives. It really made me question myself…lots of people have always considered me to be “smart”…not to be cocky but maybe that is my issue i dont know but ive always felt that i was going to do great things…and i have in a way but seeing other people do even greater things has really made me want to earn that amount of money and even more.

I suddenly feel greedy, i feel like all i do now is try to figure out ways to make that amount of money. I read the bible less now, i pray less now, i look at my job with disgust now because i dont make as much as them.

I know God has a plan for me and he knows whats best for me. And i accept his will but its hard to swallow my pride and see other people do better than me and me not do anything about it…i wish i could just let it go…i want to be humble

Some good things have came from this, ive decided to go back school and am trying even harder now to stop smoking weed because i know its the problem. Its the reason im not where i want to be. I hate weed. Its ruined my life so far.

My question to God and to the church he founded and left us and to its members and my brothers and sisters…please tell me…is it bad for me to want to earn millions of dollars? I know i shouldnt love money or ever put it before God and i dont ever want that to happen, but maybe it already has? I feel like i just want to do it because they are making that much money…i mean i am struggling with bills and i could use some more money but really i just need to stop spending money on weed and eating out…before it didn’t matter much to me i was comfortable with my salary (i dont make 6 figures)… I try to follow Jesus and focus on whats most important. But God created everything that is good and i would like to take my wife on trips and send my kids to private school and not have to worry about money and make lots of money that i can give to the poor. If i get rich i still want to be a good catholic rich man who gives his money to the poor and helps people out. I would like to payoff my house and give my mom money…she is disabled…i just want to show people that i can make that much money too…but also really help people because that really makes me happy, not to mention its Gods will…

I know i sound ungrateful and greedy and prideful and maybe i am…i feel like it…is this wrong?
 
Last edited:
  1. Stop using marijuana. Just completely stop.
  2. You may or may not need further education. But if you decide its best, do so as frugally as you can.
  3. No, of course anyone can want to be a millionaire. Millionaires are all over your parish probably. Here is the problem, the answer on why you want 5o be a millionaire is key. Is it to provide for a family or the community? Or is it to gain status or compete with others due to ego. In your case, from what you’ve stated, I’d say it was the second reason. And that needs to change in your heart. You also need to acquire wealth in a moral way.
  4. Have you heard of Dave Ramsey? That might be something to look into.
 
Ambition to a certain point is good. If you’re stuck in a dead-end, low paying job, wanting to do better is a good thing. Of course, if you take it too far you can become a mindless consumer-bot brainwashed by materialism. All things in moderation.

If you’re addicted to marijuana and can’t quit on your own, know that there is help out there. There are doctors who specialize in treating addiction and support groups specifically for marijuana addicts.
 
It is not wrong to be successful and save up money. The important question is what do you intend to do with the money?

Provide for your old age?
Provide for your family?
Are you supporting the church and other good causes. All these are good things to do.

I hope you find a good support group to help you end your addiction. You can never be the man Got wants you to be
when addicted to weed.

Good luck and God bless!
 
GRod said:
is it bad for me to want to earn millions of dollars?
Click to expand...
No. It’s how you earn it and why you want it and what you do with it that counts.

If you achieve your ambition, you might also find it’s not as exciting as you thought it would be.

However, unless and until you beat your addiction, the odds of you being rich are about the same as the odds of you winning the Powerball jackpot. I would further suggest that instead of pipe dreams about money, you focus on kicking your pot habit.
 
Last edited:
Having a net worth of one million dollars (including equity in one’s home) is not that much money anymore. You could invest it in a conservative yet somewhat aggressive growth fund (diversify risk, always diversify risk), and at a 5% return it would be $50K before taxes, something like $37.5K per year after taxes. In areas of this country where the cost of living is fairly low, one person could live quite decently on that, nothing flashy, but still adequate for basic human needs. Take some of that money and buy a very modest home, and your cost of living would be even lower than that. A decent home in an economically depressed part of the country (parts of the Rust Belt or small midwestern towns) — assuming you don’t care where you live — can be had for $60-$70K easily.

I have long held a dream that if I were ever to win a huge lottery jackpot, I would set up a few traditional Catholic young men — just how many would depend on how much I won — so that they would be well-situated early in life, own a home free and clear, and make it easier for them to find a good Catholic wife and have a family without the crippling economic demands that our modern society imposes. I would want them to train for a career and be able to make a decent living, but they would not have to earn $100K/year which is impossible for most men nowadays.
 
GRod said:
is it bad for me to want to earn millions of dollars? I know i shouldnt love money or ever put it before God and i dont ever want that to happen, but maybe it already has? I feel like i just want to do it because they are making that much money…i mean i am struggling with bills and i could use some more money but really i just need to stop spending money on weed and eating out
Click to expand...
in this world the biggest temptations IMHO are associated w/ worshiping the “golden calf” (i.e. money)

lets consider god gave moses the 10 commandments when the people were left along so they started to worship at the alter of the “golden calf”

there is a long history of mankind worshiping money and material goods,… reading between the lines of the moses story, perhaps the first commandment of god should be interpreted as warning about the evils of worshiping money

moving on,… lets consider the only time jesus is physically violent (i.e. cleaning the temple by throwing out the moneychangers)

lastly consider,…

Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of heaven! Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven.”

bottom line,… there are “needs” and there are “wants”

interesting you mentioned “want” $$$ but also mentioned “need” in a what seems to be a solution
 
I want lots of money too, so I can fund some music projects, but I’m not sure if it’s moral or not.
 
Last edited:
It seems like this experience has been a wake up call for you. It is possible to earn a really good wage if you are willing to study or train in an area that is in demand.

Most likely you could also save a lot more money if you were not frittering it away on drugs.

You seemed to have been of the attitude that you were entitled to a well paid job because of your natural intellect. Well studies show that it’s grit, diligence and hard work COMBINED with intelligence that gets results.

There is nothing wrong with having ambitions and wanting to provide for your family and have security as you age. I think at heart you are a Catholic man who would not be overcome with greed if you kept yourself in check. If you find yourself drifting from your faith go to confession regularly, go to Mass, pray and find devout friends and a devout wife.

My husband is a great provider. I cannot work outside the home at the moment as I am recovering from cancer. It is our faith that has kept us happily married for 23 years, not money (although of course having enough money to live comfortably helps a marriage!). I just mean our faith has kept us together through all our challenges.
 

Luke 12:18-21

“Then he said, 'This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. ‘And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry.”’ "But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?”
 
I got a serious revelation at mass one day. I felt God telling me that if i want that much money it should be to help people, which im totally ok with and i do wantto help people. Than i started thinking i can help people without being rich and i started thinking of St. Mother Teresa. God can turn an evil into a good. And me being envious and greedy has showed me that i need to help people. I plan to visit a nursing home soon. Man God works in mysterious ways. Maybe once i start REALLY helping people (soup kitchens, nursing homes, etc) i will see what i can with that much money if i ever get it. I was always taught money management skills and buying big fancy houses and cars was never in my plan. It just messes with me to know that other people that dont want anything to do with the church doing better than me financially.
 
GRod, you’re gonna want that million. The church is about social capital, trust me. You can help a lot of people with that kind of money.
 
I hope so. Either way i accept Gods will…i feel that if im broke for the rest of my life…well than that is just how God will make me holy…and i accept that…like how our Blessed Mother accepted Gods will
 
For some reason, my brain automatically read the title of this thread using a Regis Philbin voice.
 
I actually did a meditation yesterday (daily guided few minute meditation app) on greed and the want of money. Wanting richness to help support a family or to promote noble causes or to leave a comfortable life isn’t a bad thing.

But we have to realize that the only thing that can truly bring us peace, happiness, and connection is God alone.
 
GRod said:
Hello brothers and sisters.

I love to learn about Catholicism, i am a practicing Catholic and try to obey the church to the T…

Anyways this is my cross…my problem is im addicted to marijuana…i dropped out of college and didnt return due to it…weed has caused me many problems but for the sake of this conversation i will point to one area it affects me drasticlly and that is financially…i spend alot of money on weed and i havent tried to find better jobs or improve myself. I just feel comfortable with where im at.
Click to expand...
The weed of today isn’t the weed of the 60’s. It (THC) in today’s weed, does huge damage to mind and body. Get off of it ASAP.
 
Last edited:
It is said that St. Brendan would frequently visit her, even after he left the school and began to explore the world around Ireland. On one such occasion St. Brendan asked Ita what three things God loved the most.

She replied, “True faith in God and a pure heart, a simple life with a religious spirit and open-handedness inspired by charity.”

He then asked her what things God hated the most.

Ita explained, “A mouth that hates people, a heart harboring resentments and confidence in wealth.”

Her holiness was highly regarded by others during her lifetime, and St. Ita is recognized as the second most popular female saint in Ireland after St. Brigid.
Click to expand...
Wanting to be comfortable, or wanting to have $x so you can help people isn’t a bad thing. But putting your trust in your bank account, or prioritizing “love of money” over “love of God/neighbor” is a bad thing. And at the same time, you don’t need to wait until you have a six-figure income before you start your philanthropy— do what you can at the scale you have. You might sponsor a kid for a dollar a day, or you might donate to a feed-the-hungry charity, or you might spend a night every week helping at a shelter/soup kitchen/whatever, which doesn’t cost you any money at all.

So, #1, drop the marijuana. A college degree is a key that opens a door; it exists for the sake of turning a 20" pile of resumes into a 2" pile of resumes. There are plenty of successful people who dropped out of college, but the drugs are going to interfere with your life if you allow yourself to be controlled by them. And if you’re addicted, that means you need clean up, period. Going back to school is good if you have a specific door you need unlocked. If you don’t know why you want to go back to school, apart from “everyone says I need a degree”, then you need to look at the job description of your dream job and figure out how to get your foot on that ladder. If you don’t have a dream job, then you need to just get “a job” and start working, and figure out by the process of elimination what you succeed at and what doesn’t work.
 
#2, there’s book-smart, there’s street-smart, there’s people-smart. You can have all sorts of intelligence but not necessarily be successful without drive, focus, a plan. So being smart is a good starting point, but a lot of smart people can be used to things coming easily, and don’t necessarily know how to apply themselves. You need to have a plan for yourself. Where will you be in 1 year? In 2 years? In 5 years? What do you need to be doing for yourself now, so that you’ll be in a good situation later? Your plan won’t necessarily work out the way you intend-- but you lay the groundwork so that when opportunity presents itself, you can pounce.

Do you have a wife and kids now? You don’t need to do a fancy vacation. You can camp in the back yard, or have a day trip to a state park, or go to the municipal pool. Be happy with your state of life as it exists today, even in the midst of trying to gain something better. Do something nice for your mom today-- and it doesn’t necessarily have to be financial-- rather than holding off until you magically make $x.

The person who used what little he had well, got more. The person who buried it all in a hole, lost what little he had. So doing well with what you’ve got isn’t going to necessarily inspire God to let you win the Powerball— but don’t let the pursuit of the perfect tomorrow interfere with your ability to do good today. 💙
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top