Short on Money? Praise God Anyway!

Financial difficulties can be a true cross. Christine Hanus enumerates reasons to rejoice in living a simple life. 

If you are having trouble making ends meet, you are not alone.  

Some of us are fiscally floundering because of our insufficient income. This is a heavy cross, but we should continue to praise God. He is at work in our lives through every cross we carry.   

Then there is another category of people who are short on funds because we spend more money on non-essentials than our budget will allow. In an honest moment we might chuckle at ourselves for acting like we deserve the latest smart phone and a daily latte, but when we are forced to “go without,” we usually just get cranky. Instead of acting entitled — and perhaps making poor decisions which will come back to haunt us — we too can praise God. 

Three Reasons to Praise God Despite Financial Challenges 

Praise God for insufficient resources. It witnesses to God’s provision in our lives:   

As my husband and I were raising five children, one of the remarkable benefits of our strictly limited budget was seeing God's fatherly provision for us. It increased our faith and the faith of those around us.  

For the first ten years of our marriage, my husband supported us on a Catholic school teacher's salary. We rented an old house, owned one used car, and were paying off significant student loans. It was not at all unusual for God to provide in a small, but specific ways. One time, I had been putting off buying potatoes because of the unusually high prices but finally decided to buy them one day, no matter the cost. At the store that day, the potatoes looked old and unappetizing, and I couldn’t bring myself to do it.  The next day someone stopped by to share an excess of food that she had been given — lo and behold, potatoes.   

Our Father has also provided in big, unexpected ways when we really needed a boost, like the time we won over 10,000 dollars in a raffle!  

It is exciting to see our children, who are now raising their own families, able to trust God with their finances. Though it wasn’t always fun, our modest income helped them believe the truth of Jesus’ words:

“Seek first the kingdom [of God] and his righteousness, and all [of the things you need to sustain yourselves] will be given you besides.” (Matthew 6:33)   

Praise God when compelled to live simply. It helps us stay focused on our true home:   

Human beings tend to seek comfort and pleasure and avoid discomfort, but the saints knew how easily these tendencies can separate us from our true destiny. Living simply with few resources reminds us that this world is passing and cannot make us happy.   

A happy death … is our principal concern.  For if we attain that, it matters little if we lose all the rest. But if we do not attain that, nothing else will be of any value. (Saint Junipero Serra) 

Saint Thomas Aquinas said,   

God made man for a certain purpose—but not for the sake of material pleasures, but that he may have eternal life. For it is the Lord’s will that men have eternal life. (The Three Greatest Prayers: Commentaries on the Lord's Prayer, the Hail Mary, and the Apostles' Creed, quoted in Magnificat, January 28, 2025) 

Heaven is the goal. Personally, I am convinced that in heaven I will have a house on a lake. I am so looking forward to that! 

Praise God amid financial challenges. They will make us more Christ-like:  

Jesus Christ was poor. As his followers, we can pray to find better ways to support ourselves and our families, but a modest income or even poverty can be an invitation from Christ. An invitation to draw closer to him and become more like him.  

Think of the spoiled ten-year-old. He is not often grateful for what he receives because he has never suffered want. Think of a child in a third world country who goes to bed hungry every night and imagine his profound gratitude when someone provides for him a bowl of rice or a piece of fish.   

Trust, compassion, gratitude — if we allow the Holy Spirit to work in us through our financial difficulties, He will help us to grow in all the virtues. 

God Always Deserves Our Praise  

We should diligently try to eliminate true poverty, whether in our own life or in the lives of others, but living on a modest income is not necessarily something we need to overcome. Sometimes, being forced to live simply is a better way to live.   

No matter what our income, we are invited by God to praise Him in every circumstance. Even when it is difficult to perceive a greater purpose to our financial struggles, we should praise God. He is good, and we can trust that he is always working for our benefit. 

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Copyright 2025 Christine Hanus
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