Good morning. Today is Monday, October 12th!

🥳 Congratulations on starting today with God, and thank you for letting us be a part of it.

📖 Verse Of The Day

— 1 Timothy 6:17

🧠 Devotional

Why Does Our Money Say “In God We Trust”?

Pull out an American dollar bill or coin and you’ll find four familiar words:

“In God We Trust.”

But why is that actually on our money?

The story goes back to the Civil War.

In 1861, Treasury Secretary Salmon P. Chase received a letter from a Pennsylvania minister asking that American money recognize God. Chase agreed with the idea and instructed the U.S. Mint to develop a motto expressing the nation’s trust in God.

There was actually a problem: federal law controlled what could appear on U.S. coins, so Congress had to authorize the change.

It did.

And in 1864, a new two-cent coin became the first U.S. coin to carry the words:

“In God We Trust.”

The motto later appeared on other coins. Then, nearly a century later, Congress required it on U.S. currency, and in 1956 “In God We Trust” became the official national motto. It began appearing on paper money in 1957.

So that’s literally why those words ended up in our pockets.

But there’s also a pretty incredible biblical connection to where we see them.

The Bible repeatedly tells us to trust God.

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart.” (Proverbs 3:5)

“When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.” (Psalm 56:3)

“We trust in the name of the LORD our God.” (Psalm 20:7)

You could almost summarize those verses with the words printed on our money:

In God We Trust.

But here’s what makes the placement especially interesting.

The Bible also specifically warns us about trusting money.

Proverbs 11:28 says, “Those who trust in their riches will fall.”

And 1 Timothy 6:17 tells those who are rich not to “put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God.”

Think about that.

Money is useful precisely because it can do so much. We earn it, save it, spend it, and use it to provide for things we need. Because of that, it’s easy for money to start feeling like security.

Scripture doesn’t tell us that money itself is the problem. It warns us about what happens when our trust moves onto it.

Which makes those four words pretty fitting right where they are.

Printed directly on something Scripture warns us not to trust is a reminder of who we should trust instead.

So now you know why “In God We Trust” is printed on American coins and dollar bills.

And perhaps money is one of the best places we could regularly see that reminder.

Every time we look at something that can so easily become a source of security, the words are sitting right there:

In God We Trust.