Wealthy people are always finding more friends, but the poor lose all theirs.
~ Proverbs 19:4 (NCV)
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You could read this verse and say to yourself, I guess the only way I'll have friends is if I get rich, but I believe that this simply identifies a basic human characteristic: people love money.
The reality is that the friends you have if you are wealthy may not love you, but rather just your money. Many are in the money game -- big parties, fancy clothes, hot nightclubs, limo's, drinks, tropical vacations, etc. This hedonistic lifestyle grabs ahold of a lot of people, and they'll flock to whoever has the dough. Sure I'll be your friend -- ooh, baby, take me for a ride in your lear jet -- let's party ALL night long! But when the going gets rough or the money runs out, the friends tend to run out, too.
Does that mean that having money is bad? No. It's simply a caution about how you choose your friends, because money draws alot of pseudo-friends, pseudo being the operative word.
Yet even us Average Joe's can get caught up in being wooed by money, can't we? If you happen to know someone who has a lot of cash, and they say, Hey, let's fly to Tahoe this weekend and play golf! We can catch a couple of shows, eat some great food, and have a great time!..., but you had previously agreed to spend the weekend with a friend who doesn't get out much 'cuz they lost their job and just don't have the funds to do anything -- the big entertainment being to sit on the couch and watch rented movies from Blockbuster...hmm. Might you have a bit of a tough time saying 'no' to the ritz, over the regular? Do the dollars talk louder than the plain-and-ordinary?
Bottom line is, don't let money be the driver of your relationships, whether you have cash, or you don't. If your wallet is thick, be shrewd when it comes to making friends, and if your living paycheck-to-paycheck, don't be tempted to schmooze with folks just because they have what you don't have. Make sure your motives for making and being a friend are honorable and from the heart, 'cuz guess what? Money can be gone in a flash, and the lack thereof becomes a quick litmus test of real friendship.
Let's see...lemme check my wallet. I've got enough to rent a $4 film at Blockbuster -- who wants to be my friend? :-) Hey, I'm not totally broke...I have microwave popcorn in the cupboard, too. No one can say I skimp when it comes to my friends, lemme tell ya! :-)
Love,
Joelene
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