Eric Poulin

Posts Tagged ‘wealth’

Where is thy faith?

I’ve been studying a lot about faith recently and I’ve discovered a fresh perspective on having Faith in Jesus Christ that I’d like to share.

As members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, we should be experts on the subject of faith. We can quote scriptures to describe it, such as:

Hebrews 11:1

“…faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”

Ether 12:6

“…faith is things which are hoped for and not seen…”

Alma 32:21

“faith is not to have a perfect knowledge of things; therefore if ye have faith ye hope for things which are not seen, which are true.”

Joseph Smith, the latter-day prophet described faith as a

“principle of power, the moving cause of all action.”

Another writer in the early 1900s named Napolean Hill who spent 30 years studying the most successful people in America, said,

“Faith is the only agency through which the power of God can be harnessed and used by man” (T&GR)

We are constantly told we need be in possession of this stuff called “faith” and that we should be striving to develop and increase it…, but do we really understand what it is? Why is faith a principle of power, and exactly how do we go about getting it?

The standard primary answers (read the scriptures, pray, attend church) don’t explain why those activities can lead to faith and those activities don’t always lead to increased faith if we don’t understand the principle at work. Read the rest of this entry »

"but time and chance happeneth to them all"

“Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.
I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all.”

The bible dictionary explains that the first verse in this citation is not a doctrinal pronouncement that after death there is nothing –rather, this is a worldly view – people “under the sun” believe that.

This scripture tells us that whatever vocation we choose (whatever we do with our hands) we should do our best, and put our energies into it. It also explains that no matter how smart you may be, how hard or fast your work, no matter how skilled or what brilliant ideas you may have, success comes and goes as a matter of chance. A friend of mine believes that wealth is a blessing of the Lord that is given to certain individuals and not to others, whether you strive for it or not. He explains how some wealthy, with the craziest bumbling ideas you can imagine, seem to make a tidy fortune despite themselves. alternatively, I’m sure we all know others who seems to have brilliant ideas and excellent work ethic, but never quite attain to any financial success – and teeter on the edge of poverty for their whole lives.

I personally agree with this line of thought to the extent that the Lord does bless some of us with wealth and other not. I believe that as we are obedient, more often than not, the Lord does bless us with prosperity, which often manifests itself as financial success, but this is not a hard and fast rule. In the general this applies, but specifically the case may be different, depending on what the Lord has planned for you.

Economic Interchange

Helaman 6:7-9

“And behold, there was peace in all the land, insomuch that the Nephites did go into whatsoever part of the land they would, whether among the Nephites or the Lamanites.
And it came to pass that the Lamanites did also go whithersoever they would, whether it were among the Lamanites or among the Nephites; and thus they did have free intercourse one with another, to buy and to sell, and to get gain, according to their desire.
And it came to pass that they became exceedingly rich, both the Lamanites and the Nephites; and they did have an exceeding plenty of gold, and of silver, and of all manner of precious metals, both in the land south and in the land north.”

Helaman 6:11-14

“And behold, there was all manner of gold in both these lands, and of silver, and of precious ore of every kind; and there were also curious workmen, who did work all kinds of ore and did refine it; and thus they did become rich.
They did raise grain in abundance, both in the north and in the south; and they did flourish exceedingly, both in the north and in the south. And they did multiply and wax exceedingly strong in the land. And they did raise many flocks and herds, yea, many fatlings.
Behold their women did toil and spin, and did make all manner of cloth, of fine-twined linen and cloth of every kind, to clothe their nakedness. And thus the sixty and fourth year did pass away in peace.
And in the sixty and fifth year they did also have great joy and peace, yea, much preaching and many prophecies concerning that which was to come. And thus passed away the sixty and fifth year.”

Free trade makes for a wealthy society. Common belief in society fosters commerce and makes society as a whole wealthy. Part of this has to do with specialization in industry. Specialization makes for higher quality products and services, and so long as everyone is contributing effort and work, that society will fluorish.

This points to another theme covered in previous posts about the value of networking. It was only by intermingling with other poeple that the society as a whole became “exceedingly rich”. As we individually intermingle with others and enlarge our network of contacts, friends, associates we a also more likely to “fluorish exceedingly”.

There are networking organizations whose sole purpose is to bring together people who have a common interest of passing leads to each other (I’m thinking of BNI). Personally, I know of the power of networking. Opportunities arise as you put yourself out there for people to know who you are and what you do. I’ve found a particularly helpful tool is connecting with people who are “hubs”. You know people like this… people who seem to know everyone or can easily become friends with everyone in a room. As you connect closely with people like this, they can help introduce you and your ideas around and help make opportunities.

1 Nephi 5:21-22

“And we had obtained the records which the Lord had commanded us, and searched them and found that they were desirable; yea, even of great worth unto us, insomuch that we could preserve the commandments of the Lord unto our children.
Wherefore, it was wisdom in the Lord that we should carry them with us, as we journeyed in the wilderness towards the land of promise.”

It appears that Lehi has just learned of his genealogy. In the preceding versus it says that he discovered his genealogy, that he was a decedent of Joseph of Egypt. This is valuable information, given the patriarchal order and birthright of the blessings pronounced on the tribes of israel. Also the history of the creation and the commandments of the Lord. He calls these things of “great worth”. In addition to the spiritual and intellectual value, these brass plates were also the key to their temporal prosperity. Read the rest of this entry »

1 Nephi 5:2

“…she also had complained against my father, telling him that he was a visionary man; saying: Behold thou hast led us forth from the land of our inheritance, and my sons are no more, and we perish in the wilderness.”

Even Sariah was feeling the effects from the loss of the comforts Lehi’s wealth provided them. This reads like: ‘first we have to leave our wealth, and now my sons are dead and we’re going to die too’, as if she were listing her greatest grievances. It’s interesting that amongst her greatest complaints, even used in the same sentence as her sons being dead and her and her husband’s imminent death, is the loss of wealth. Read the rest of this entry »

1 Nephi 2:7

“And it came to pass that he built an altar of stones, and made an offering unto the Lord, and gave thanks unto the Lord our God.”

What offering would Lehi have given? Perhaps a thanks offering? (Leviticus 7:12) Whatever the offering, it would have been done without a priest present to consume the offering. We know Lehi is a descendant of Joseph, not a Levite. The offering would have been one of the best of his flock. Read the rest of this entry »