Thursday, October 18, 2012

Money, Money, Money By The Pound!


In 1977 Disney released a children’s film titled, “Pete’s Dragon.” Found among the songs in this delightful film is “Every Little Piece.” This song sets the stage for some of the dramatic tension in the film. The corrupt Doctor Terminus sings as he dreams of the riches that he will acquire by capturing Pete’s dragon, Elliot, and selling him piece by piece. The song begins this way:

Dragon whiskers, dragon toes, a dragon tooth and a dragon nose

Every little piece
Every little piece
We could make a million by slicing him, dicing him

Hoagy, we could sell every little shell
There's enough of him to go around
Money, money, money by the pound.

Composed by Al Kasha and Joel Hirschhorn



This song rings true because of the universal nature of greed and the love of money. While it is unfortunate to hear of crime and corruption in our society as television news reports every sordid detail, it remains a harsh reminder of how deeply greed penetrates the human spirit. By far most crimes reported have at their root the same attitude as displayed by Doctor Terminus: greed and a desire for money, money, money by the pound!
Jesus himself declares, “No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.” (Luke 16:13 ESV).
St. Paul echoes Jesus in his letter to Timothy, “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.” (1 Timothy 6:10 ESV).
It can be a great struggle for the redeemed to have a proper relationship to wealth. Under the cross as forgiven sinners we seek to see our financial situation as a gift of God, one that we do not in any real way deserve. 
May we repent and pray for God to forgive our greed that we may learn to receive our daily bread with thanksgiving!