Scripture

Matthew 25:14-30

One problem is that we tend to build our investment strategies on “quick returns” rather than patiently waiting for more valuable investments to mature over time. Financial capital gives us the quickest return, and so we tend to focus our investment strategies there. All the capitals above financial take longer to grow, but they are also more valuable and last longer. Spiritual capital, the most valuable capital, lasts forever. But it also takes the longest to grow.

For example, let’s think about the business world. In it, financial capital is valued most highly. The profit motive specifically points to financial profit. Everything else is leveraged to grow financial capital. Getting more money is seen as the point of business. So the business world might list the five capitals in the (order shown on the shape “Shadow 5-Capitals: Business”.

When we think financial capital is most important, we are willing to sacrifice all kinds of other capital to get it. Working late at the office might get us a great bonus at the end of the year, but in doing so we sacrifice relational capital with our children, who wish we were home to tuck them in at night. We also sacrifice our physical capital, as we work so much our health begins to fail. We sacrifice spiritual capital because we don’t attend to our relationship with Jesus (spiritual capital) at all for some time. Eventually, life stops working properly, because we’ve made a foolish investment, sacrificing capital that was in fact more valuable (spiritual, relational, physical) to grow capital that was less valuable (financial).

Excerpt From: Mike Breen & Ben Sternke. “Oikonomics.”