Sunday, April 26, 2009

Things

What is it about "things?"

Items. Materials. Stuff. Clothes. Furniture. Jewelry. Cars. Houses. Electronics.

All of it.

What is it about these things that make us jealous?

Covet?

And so many other non-brag worthy feelings?

What is it about these things that will make us live outside of our means to get it?

And it's all the social norm.

Why is it that I love materialistic things that only fade away?


What is it in our human heads that gets us so excited over materialistic things?


I'm not saying that "stuff" isn't OK. I REALLY REALLY like stuff. And there's a lot of cool stuff that helps us make more time for the more important things.


I'm sure it sounds like I'm stating the obvious here.

But I guess I find myself getting very frustrated for wanting so many things when I know what God has to say about it.


1 Timothy 6:9, 10

9. However, those who are determined to be rich fall into temptation and a snare and many senseless and hurtful desires, which plunge men into destruction and ruin.

10. For the love of money is a root of all sorts of injurious things, and by reaching out for this love some have been led astray from the faith and have stabbed themselves all over with many pains.


1 John 2:16, 17

16. Because everything in the world—the desire of the flesh and the desire of the eyes and the showy display of one’s means of life—does not originate with the Father, but originates with the world. 17. Furthermore, the world is passing away and so is its desire, but he that does the will of God remains forever.


Those are such straight up verses. I love them. These just show how simple this truth is. These materialistic loves do not come from God. And even more, they don't last.


Like Dave Ramsey says, money itself is not evil. Neither are any of the actual materials we desire. They are indifferent. It's the attitude and feelings that WE have about money and materials.

It's interesting at how our culture looks at material things. We want them so bad that most of the things we have, we don't even own. We borrowed to get it. So it's not even really ours.


Some of us make so much money, but we buy more and more of what we can't afford. So really, we're worse off than the less wealthy person making a quarter of what we make who has no debt.

Weird to think about.


Well, there's my ramble. I'm done now.




No comments: