Last year the average individual federal income tax refund was around $3,050. State income tax refunds averaged another $2,715.

[See: www.cnbc.com/2017/04/17/heres-the-average-tax-refund-people-get-in-every-us-state.html]

Before you think about how generous the government is, remember that your refund is nothing more than the money you gave to the government interest-free over this last year.

We would all like to have more money to spend, so this must be a good thing, right? I’m not so sure. I think that government refunds could end up doing more harm than good. Stick with me for a minute and let me explain before you conclude that I’ve lost my mind.

As we open that official U. S. Government refund check (or see it direct deposited into our checking account), we are going to be tempted to think that money comes from the government. The truth is that the government can’t give us anything that it doesn’t take away from us–or from someone else–first. The truth is that wealth is only created by hard work. The Bible understands this principle: “Poor is he who works with a negligent hand, but the hand of the diligent makes rich” (Proverbs 10:4).

There are two ways of getting money without working for it. We can get other people’s money by stealing it, or we can persuade someone else (the government for example) to take it from those who worked for it and give it to us. Our best long-term financial security, though, comes from our own hard work, not from the government. “Wealth obtained by fraud dwindles, but the one who gathers by labor increases it” (Proverbs 13:11).

Getting a refund check from the government could give us the illusion that the government exists to take care of us. Hard work, though, is how America became the wealthiest country in history. This may sound harsh, but the need for money and even hunger are the best motivators to get us to work hard. The Bible explains it this way: “A worker’s appetite works for him, for his hunger urges him on” (Proverbs 16:26).

Although we should get money through our own hard work, we need to also remember that every good thing ultimately comes from the Creator. God is the One who gives us the ability and the opportunity to make money. (Yes, there are some among us who seem to believe that all good things come from the government.) Paul told the believers of his day that “my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19).

The Bible explains that when we surrender our lives to Christ, He promises to care for our daily needs. “But seek first [God’s] kingdom [not human government] and His righteousness, and all these things [the things we need] will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33). In other words, if we make seeking God and following Him our top priority, He will give us the material things we need. I like that! I am so glad I have a heavenly Father who faithfully provides for my needs. I can let the Lord “worry” about my financial problems. I don’t have to.

Money is not the most important thing that God provides. Coming to know God personally has some very important rewards. For example, God says “You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13). We can actually have a real relationship with the One who made us. This promise can be yours: “I will give them a heart to know Me, for I am the Lord; and they will be My people, and I will be their God, for they will return to Me with their whole heart” (Jeremiah 24:7).

One big roadblock to knowing God comes from our own selfish desires. We want to be in charge of our own lives. We think we know best–and we are wrong. The Bible calls that sin. That is why Jesus gave His life for us. “For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die.  But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:7-8).

Give your life to Christ. He will wipe away all of your sins and give you eternal “refunds” that are worth more than the whole U.S. Treasury. “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:26).

There is nothing like knowing that Jesus owns you!