Rockefeller Money

"We are remembered not for that which we made but that which we gave." -Author Unknown

When you hear the name "Rockefeller" what comes to mind? Money? Power? Wealth? All of the above. But what about generous? Rockefeller was known as a tycoon of his day and was criticized and scrutinized heavily for his ruthlessness. That's the story you know all too well.

What you may not know is his humble beginnings. When John D. Rockefeller, Sr was a boy he had a flock of turkeys; he watched a hen nest and taking her brood as it hatched; raised them and sold them for a profit. He was seven years old at the time and began saving money. One summer a farmer asked to borrow money for that seasons crops. Rockefeller loaned a neighboring farmer $50 at seven percent interest. After a year the principal returned interest of $3.50. It was more money than he had made in 10 days working 10 hours a day hoeing potatoes. "From that point on...I determined to make money work for me." (pg. 11, The Rockefellers: An American Dynasty)

He built Standard Oil, an oil refinery, from nothing. And if you watch the documentary "The Men Who Built America" he was known for his ruthlessness. An became America's first billionaire.

There is a common saying that states, "Givers gain." So why do we remember Rockefeller? He was America's first billionaire and now there are thousands of billionaires. We remember him not because he made the most, but because he gave the most. He was known to walk around New York and give penny's to the homeless. Because of his poor public image. His publicist encouraged him to be photographed giving dimes to small children. A devout Baptist. By 1905 he tithed over $100M to his church.

Was it his religious beliefs that made him the wealthiest among his peers? Maybe it was his drive to become rich?

Proverbs 11:16 says, "A fair woman retains honor. And ruthless men retain riches." (King Solomon) John D. Rockefeller, Sr was ruthless. Ruthless is strong willed. Strong minded. Decisive. Learning to be ruthless is learning when to say yes and when to say no.

Strong (ruthless) men retain riches because they have learned how to say no. This is known as Occam's Razor or The Law of Parsimony. "Parsimony, and not industry, is the immediate cause of the increase of capital. Industry, indeed provides the subject in which parsimony accumulates; but whatever industry might acquire, if parsimony did not save and store it up, the capital would never be greater." (pg. 179, Wealth of Nations) Simply put, industriousness creates wealth, frugality preserves it.

This does not mean hoard money. In "Give and Take" by Adam Grants he speaks about the three types of reciprocity. "Giving, taking, and matching are three fundamental styles of social interaction, but the line between them aren't hard and fast. You might find that you shift from one reciprocity style to another as you travel across different work roles and relationships."(pg.5, Give and Take) In work most people are matchers. Next up the ladder is takers. People who only get involved when there is a direct benefit to them. And at the top of the company are givers. And when givers succeed it has a ripple effect and spread to those around them. How?

Christ explains in the parable of talents. One had five talents he made them 10. One had three he made them six. Another had one, did nothing with it, and when his master came stripped him of it and gave it to the one with 10. Rockefeller was one of the most generous men to ever live. He gave to a neighboring farmer. He tithed millions to his church. And in 1913 he gave $100M to fund the Rockefeller Foundation to, "...promote the well-being of mankind throughout the world." (pg. 64-65, The Rockefellers: An American Dynasty)

In 1910, he gave his "spare change" of $45M to the University of Chicago. And toward the end of his life he said it was, "...the best investment he ever made." (Pg. 50, The Rockefellers: An American Dynasty.) Yet he needed to know how to organize his philanthropy into, "scientific giving." The demands were so great that he hired Frederick T. Gates as his chief almoner. He knew how to make money and now had to learn how to give.

Imagine a Reservoir. One inlet no outlets. What happens to the contents? They began to rot. These are people with one talent. They have a job and get a paycheck but they do not tithe, give, or think about how to serve. And they struggle to survive living paycheck-to-paycheck.

Imagine another reservoir. With three pipelines. You have one inlet and two outlets. Money comes in from working (paycheck) and you tithe to your church (outlet 1) and you donate to charity (outlet 2). Now money is circulating and through the spiritual principle of reciprocity you create ways for money to comeback to you and one of these outlets can become an inlet.

Now imagine a reservoir with five pipelines. More inlets more outlets. This is what Rockefeller did through Gates. All request came through the central Baptist Church.

And Gates personally investigated all prospective recipients and later said, "I found not a few of Mr. Rockefeller's habitual charities to be worthless and practically fraudulent. But on the other hand, I gradually developed and introduced into all his charities the principle of scientific giving and he found himself in on long time laying aside retail giving almost entirely..." (Pg. 52, The Rockefellers: An American Dynasty.)

"We are remembered not for that which we made but that which we gave." By the time of his death in 1937 John D. Rockefeller, Sr lifetime he gave over $500M (adjusted for inflation $9,302,642,857.00 in 2021).

If you learn one thing. Learn to how give,