Have you ever felt we are living in one of the most affluent eras of human history? Western civilization has been blessed with a standard of living unequaled by any previous period of prosperity. Our country enjoys benefits that include the latest technological progress. Our normal lifestyles contain things that are extravagant and luxurious to the masses of world population. Drought, famine, ignorance, and war have taken their toll upon many unfortunate countries. For the most part, we have been a benevolent nation even though at times it has served our own purposes. Some things, however, our technological genius has not mastered. We have not learned how to feed the starving millions. We have not been able to get medical assistance to all those dying with curable diseases. Our financial aid has not bought peace and prosperity for warring factions in most nations who receive our help. We have not kept our own country free of crime, drugs, poverty, and disease.

Perhaps we are beginning to learn that material prosperity is not the answer to the ailments of human society. Affluence has not been able to cure the social and moral evils of our land. We must look to more than money for the healing of our minds, bodies , and souls. There is a God-shaped void in our lives which our pagan idols cannot fill. While it is good to have money and the things money can buy we must never lose the things money cannot buy. We can no longer trust our ability to produce a more desirable society with less desirable folk. What good is a higher standard of living if there is no quality of life to go with it?

We cannot escape the fact that the spiritual gives meaning to the material. No aspect of our affluent life style has any meaning apart from the values that lie deep within us. "In God We Trust" is not just a motto for our money. It should reflect the spirit of our spending. It recognizes God in the way we earn our livelihood and in our willingness to share our blessings. We celebrate the birth of our nation in recognition of our divinely permitted prosperity. "God Bless America" is not just a neat song to sing on flag-waving days. It is a daily prayer on the lips of every believing American. God's blessings are always conditional. He blesses us so that He may bless others through us. What we really celebrate is our capacity to give.