Money Post (Pt 3)

There are some things we need, some things that are nice to have, and everything else are just wants. Food and water those are necessary, we need them to live. Shelter – a home – that’s nice to have, but not a necessity necessarily. Then there’s all the stuff to go in the house, all of that is socially dictated by the culture you’re in. Beds in India are floors sometimes. Kitchens in Egypt are sparse. Showers in Uganda are rivers.

Food – God will give us our daily bread. Water – there are people screaming out in hell for a drop on their ravaged tongues and it not only drizzles on us here in America, but it floods from the skies at times. Are you getting it? What you need has been provided in abundance here in America. The “Inequality of Wealth” we’re talking about is the ability or inability to get horribly made pieces of wood and ceramic at a store to stick on a wall and smile at once! We’re whining at the fact that someone’s grass is greener than ours! We’re discontented children screaming that their ice cream is bigger than ours.

“Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.”

A point here: Jesus didn’t instruct us to pray for tomorrow’s food and sins, he told us to pray for today’s. The troubles of today are enough in themselves, let tomorrow worry about its problems. If God gives us food for the week he has taken care of today’s bread issues and given more than we need. Anything you have beyond today is icing on the cake, cause only the Lord knows whether or not you’re even going to live to use that icing.

(Also, a thought, God dictates what we need and don't need. He gives life and he takes life away. If what you need is to experience the fullness of God without shadow or veil - he gracously gives you death. So to say water and food are necessary, God defines what is neceassry and what is lifegiving.)

An American's America

Reading by the candlelight, The Civil Wars playing in the background, sipping on some apple cider by all accounts relaxing. In and of itself is nothing to write home about or to blog about, but when compared to what the rest of the world gets, the ability to relax, to completely chill is profound.

But we whine about our small plights, or poor selves. Yet ironically enough the day after we give thanks for all we have we forego all sleep to buy more stuff. Who are we? What are we? A contradictory statement: having everything but needing more.

As Americans we’re free, right? Yet we’re still enslaved to stuff, and not our stuff, we’re enslaved to other people’s stuff. We want what they have. We’re a country of adulterous idolaters. Claiming to love One yet all the while going to bed with anything else.

What freedom is there in our society? The reply might be, “Freedom to do what we want,” freedom to be ruled by our animal self and all the longings of what we see? That’s not freedom. We’re still enslaved the difference is we just ‘like’ our master.

Don’t get me wrong I love my country, I’ve seen the world and I love living here. But a hundred years ago men worked to bring home the necessities and when they had no money they went without. It appears as though we’ve lost our reason (and by ‘reason’ I mean sense, ability to think clearly).

Self-satisfaction is the god, which rules our hearts. Self-appreciation is the worship song we sing. Self-worth is the highest possible virtue…

But we won’t change that. The master whipping our backs and sinking us into debt is what we call ‘freedom’ but freedom also means no hindrance of restraint, but we’re restrained by what we see in other’s hands, we’re restrained by the debt-collector. We’re locked up nicely in our plush cells – but their cell is nicer.

Stuff is nice, but if we have not a healthy perspective on stuff, stuff will kill us.

Bankruptcy, riots, and more because, “I want what they have, now.”