Money in the Hand of a Fool

by Harvard Chinyemba
(Lusaka, Zambia.)

Ouch! some words are just too piercing, especially when they are directed at us. No,no one would love to be called a fool, but I have learnt during these few days I have lived on earth that for you to make meaningful strides towards success, you need to take an honest look at your life and judge fairly what you see in your mirror.

Change does not come through hide and seek, but by carefully scrutinizing your lifestyle. The bible in Proverbs says that whoever hides his/her sins will not prosper, but he who confesses them finds mercy.

I must confess that, more often than not, I have acted foolishly, but God has been so gracious to me, especially when I pour out my heart to Him.

Looking at some decisions that I have made in life, including in the area of money, I have been quite some fool!

Yes, this is the area I want to dissect on at this point in time; Money in the hand of a fool. Now, dear reader, before you count me out of the list of sane people,read Proverbs 17:16.

It says, and I quote, "Of what use is money in the hand of a fool,since he has no desire to get wisdom?"(NIV). Thank God I have been saved from the 'hacksaw', the words are coming from the creator Himself.

Money is a very powerful tool that can be used to either build or destroy, therefore we must strive to gain wisdom on how best we can utilize it to our benefit.

Who is a fool? A fool is someone who does not think of tomorrow. Someone whose focus is limited to today and now without thinking of what tomorrow might show up with.

I have seen some grey haired men pushing wheelbarrows or begging for alms on the streets. To your amazement, you would discover that most of these people were well to do, but because of the choices and decisions they made, they are where they are now.

Very few will tell you that their life was that of struggles through and through. Let me hasten to say here that I am not implying that every old man or woman you see on the streets begging or doing jobs that are otherwise meant for the young is foolish. No, that would be un-African. I would not entertain such a thought in my mind.

They are my fore-bearers, therefore they deserve my respect. Besides, my mother told me to respect elders. Who am I to speak ill of them? But life teaches us many things. It teaches us that we must learn from the mistakes that others have made.

A fool is someone who see his friend fall into a ditch but still goes, headlong like a horse going for battle, and falls into the same ditch. It is always painful to see someone misusing hard-earned money. Money which somebody else sweated for, only to be inherited by a guy from nowhere.

Some of these people who inherit their father's or relatives' property care less. The financial castle that took years of hard work and a lot of sacrifice can be brought down in a few days.


I have see another thing that baffles me. Some poor people say they drink liquor so that they can forget their worries, while on the other hand, some rich people overspend on beer and other things to show off. Both the former and latter do not realise that, slowly, they will end up being poorer,thereby causing Africa to sink deeper and deeper into abject poverty.

Without hope of ever rising up. A vicious spiral. Quite sad indeed. Let share the following with you;

(1) Money is for investing. Every coin must be used properly and, unless we learn to value it, money will always run away from us, hence we will continue to be beggars.

A fool, as I have alluded to earlier,will not think of tomorrow. He does not know that money has got wings. It might be with you today, but who knows, tomorrow it might fly away.

Remember,the Bible tells us that a righteous man will leave an inheritance for his children and his children's children. Therefore we must invest so that our children do not suffer. How can we succeed to eliminate poverty if one has to start all by himself to have wealth without a foundation to start from? Unfortunately, most of us will continue, not from where our parents left, but to start the race on our own.

(2) Money is for giving. Only a fool will not know that life is full of ups and downs. There are many things that befall us in life. Without anticipation, sickness may strike or worse still one is bound to lose everything that he/she has sweated for under unforeseen circumstances.

Therefore, it is always wise to be good to people on your way up because you may need them on your
way down. Give, do not withhold money when you can afford to. Remember also to give to God what belongs to Him, bearing in mind that He is the one who gives us power to gain wealth. Sow in God's work also. Only a foolish farmer will eat everything including the seed!