We should always seek to be wise managers of the various blessings God has bestowed upon us, whether as individuals, families, churches, or the nation.
A good steward is not only well informed but also frugal—that is, he not only strives to “know well the condition of your flocks, and give attention to your herds” (Psalms 27:23) but also heeds Jesus’ command to avoid waste and “gather up the leftover fragments so that nothing will be lost” (John 6:12).
As Jesus told Peter: “Who then is the faithful and sensible steward, whom his master will put in
charge of his servants, to give them their rations at the proper time? Blessed is
that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes.
Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions.” (Luke 12:42-44) As part of the efficient use of resources God has provided, we are specifically instructed to avoid debt (Romans 13:8, Deuteronomy 28:12). Sadly, the federal government has ignored this simple directive, and so the national debt has now climbed past $22 trillion.
Reflective of the bad decisions causing this debt are: The government’s National Science Foundation spent $856,000 to train and film
mountain lions running on treadmills; [1] $50,000 to train sea monkeys to swim
synchronized; [2] $559,681 to exercise shrimp on a treadmill; [3] and $171,000 to study how
monkeys gamble. [4] It also spent $331,000 to study angry spouses stabbing voodoo dolls
representing the other spouse [5] The National Institute of Health spent over $800,000 to make a video game about feeding kids vegetables, [6] and one of its agencies spent $387,000 to test the healing factors of Swedish massages on rabbits [7] The National Endowment for Arts spent $30,000 to have Shakespeare’s Hamlet performed by dogs [8]
Such frivolous expenditures are not those of a “faithful and sensible steward.” We truly have
reason to ask that we be “forgiven of our debts” (Matthew 6:12).
President Dwight Eisenhower warned that the government’s tendency to fund such wasteful
projects results in the “domination of the nation’s scholars,” explaining that: “The solitary inventor, tinkering in his shop, has been overshadowed by task forces of scientific discovery.…a government contract becomes virtually a substitute for intellectual curiosity.” [9] So let us be good stewards of what God has given America and strive to only fund those projects which are worthwhile, therefore obeying the Biblical mandate that we, “owe no one anything, except to love each other” (Romans 13:8).
' Foundations of Truth hereby waives all claim of copyright (economic and moral) in this work and immediately places it in the public domain; it may be used, published, edited, and distributed in any manner whatsoever without any attribution or notice to Foundations of Truth.
1 Sean Davis, “Wastebook 2014: Eight Absurd Government Project Funded With Your Money,” The Federalist (October 22, 2014), here
2 Sean Davis, “Wastebook 2014: Eight Absurd Government Project Funded With Your Money,” The Federalist (October 22, 2014), here
3 Stephen Dinan, “Tax Dollars Fund Shrimp on Treadmills, Jell-O Wrestling in Antarctica,” The Washington Post (May 26, 2011), here
4 Sean Davis, “Wastebook 2014: Eight Absurd Government Project Funded With Your Money,” The Federalist (October 22, 2014), here
5 Sean Davis, “Wastebook 2014: Eight Absurd Government Project Funded With Your Money,” The Federalist (October 22, 2014), here
6 Sean Davis, “Wastebook 2014: Eight Absurd Government Project Funded With Your Money,” The Federalist (October 22, 2014), here
7 Sean Davis, “Wastebook 2014: Eight Absurd Government Project Funded With Your Money,” The Federalist (October 22, 2014), here
8 Joe Perticone, “The Most Ridiculous Projects the Government Funded in 2017,” Business Insider (November 28, 2017), here
9 Dwight Eisenhower, “Press Release Containing the Text of the Address, January 17, 1961,” Ike Eisenhower Foundation (accessed September 19, 2019), here
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