Verse
But Balaam answered the, "Even if Balak [the king] gave me all the silver and gold in his palace, I could not do anything great or small to go beyond the command of the Lord my God." Numbers 22:18 NIV
Thought
It is always tragic when we learn about a person who loses a position or is convicted of a crime as a result of some financial impropriety. More often than not such people are very educated and intelligent with very responsible jobs whose lapses in judgement end their careers. What is so astounding is that these people actually believe that they can get away with the same actions that have resulted in placing thousands of others in jeopardy and in jail. And it is almost always caused by an action related to money.
Balaam was asked to do something by a king that would have violated instructions that he had from God. His response was that there was no amount of silver or gold that the king could pay him that would cause him to disobey the command of God. We would call that integrity.
Those who will do anything for money are those who will never truly be free - financially or otherwise. Had Balaam consented to the king's request, the king would have been able to hold his actions over his head for the rest of Balaam's life. But Balaam earned something more important than money - he earned the respect of the king.
Be careful what you will do to get money. It's better to be right than it is to be rich.
Prayer
"God, give me the kind of integrity that Balaam had. Amen."
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