I just filed my taxes, and after a good four hours of ensuring all entries are correct, not to mention the hours of compiling records, they are finished! Aside from the fiasco caused by Turbo Tax's poorly announced changes in product, everything also went as usual.
I always think of the passage about whoever can be trusted with little, can be trusted with much; and whoever can be trusted with much can be trusted with little. That's something to think about if anyone is thinking of cheating on taxes. Personally, I joke that if I'm ever audited, the government will deserve it because they'll get so much paper and documentation that they'll regret it! So, while I'll take whatever deductions I'm entitled to, I won't take what I'm not.
Paying taxes also made me think of Jesus' answer to the question of whether it was right to pay taxes to Caesar. Of course, that was an opportunity for Jesus to make people think to separate what is God's and what is earthly. While we can ultimately attribute everything to God, it's a good reminder of what is important, and what is here today and gone tomorrow.
Matthew 6: 19-20 states: "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal." It doesn't take much for me to decipher what that means.
I value my family and friendships. I value love which I think endures and surpasses the boundaries between earth and Heaven. I value my faith and the hope that it gives me. To be honest, I also value enough food to eat and the means to provide a comfortable life for myself. But I think those are just blessings for which I should be thankful. I'm not planning to store up anything physical except to share with my fellowman, and I think that's the way it's supposed to be. Share the earthly goods, but remember what's really important - the life we live after this one.
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