1 Tim 6:2-12 / Luke 8:1-3
We know that in mathematics, zero multiplied by any number the result will still be zero.
That is the basic mathematical formula and it needs no further explanation nor can there be any argument.
If that is the mathematical principle, then the similar thing can be said in the spiritual sense.
St. Paul would put it like this in the 1st reading: We brought nothing into this world, and we can take nothing out of it.
That is so true isn't it. We came into this world with nothing, and whatever we have obtained or gotten in this life, it is a fact that we cannot bring it with us to the next.
And St. Paul tells us that as long as we have food and clothing, let us be content with that.
He also warns us that people who long to be rich are a prey to temptation; they get trapped into all sorts of foolish and dangerous ambitions which eventually plunge them into ruin and destruction.
Yes, we must avoid all that, and we must aim to be saintly and religious, filled with faith and love, patient and gentle.
We see that kind of simplicity in the gospel as Jesus and His disciples went through the towns and villages preaching and proclaiming the Good News of the Kingdom of God.
With them are several women - Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Susanna and others - who provided for Jesus and His disciples out of their own resources.
Indeed, we don't need much in life. Having food, clothing and shelter, and faith in God is enough.
And if ever we are down to nothing, then God will come up with something. We are nothing, but God is everything. That is the Good News of the Kingdom of God. Let us be contented with that.