At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore (Ps. 16: 11)
Wealth gotten by vanity shall be diminished:
Proverbs 13:11
But he that gathereth by labour shall increase.
It is folly to give way to daydreams that provide a pathway to riches and wealth. Some daydreams are indulged on the couch, staring off into the middle distance, while other daydreams are actually pursued in real time. There are some daydreamers who pursue unicorns and rainbows, and who are very diligent in talking to potential investors about rainbows and unicorns.
When wealth is obtained in this way (and it is not always obtained in the first place), it is wealth that diminishes. Wealth gotten by vanity does not have staying power. This appears to be referring to schemes that can show gains short term. In a Ponzi scheme, where you use the investments of later investors as a way of paying of earlier investors, you create the illusion of mojo, because the earlier investors talk about what a shrewd move it was to sign onto this project early. But the whole operation is staggering along on rickety stilts. It is going to come crashing down.
The contrast is being made to the one who acquires wealth bit by bit, steadily over time. Gathering by labor is the way to increase.
One of the key elements in daydream wealth is that the pitch appeals to rapidity. Get rich quick now is the appeal. Those who follow the biblical pattern of acquiring wealth rarely make the kind of pitch that assumes “you can have it now.”
Suppose you say a Facebook ad that invited you to download a free booklet that said that it was going to teach you HOW TO MAKE MILLIONS IN REAL ESTATE!! This interested you, and so you downloaded the booklet and read it. The advice consisted of elements like the following: 1. Get a realty license. 2. Obtain a position at a realtors’ office, or establish one of your own. 3. Work diligently and hard for the next thirty years. 4. Do quality work, and never stop learning how to improve. 5. Make sure to tithe what you make. 6. Be generous and open-handed with your wealth. 7. After you have made your millions, share this booklet with others.
Pass it on.
