a post about stuff...
lets not lie...that title makes this sound like the most directionless post ever...but its not. it really is a post about stuff. like things. like i was reading the Lewis blog and noticed a verse from the bible directing us not to store up treasure on earth where they can be destroyed and stolen. i'm wondering about the verse and what it is telling me. is it telling me not to have stuff. to live without things or nice things anyway. or is it saying that the things i do have are not to be my treasure. and if i dont treat them as treasure, if i assign to them a proper value is it ok to have them? if my treasure is things that will not pass away, friends, family, relationships that one would assume carry into the life we live after this? if my treasures are things of real value and not the nice stuff here?
my thoughts: i have always felt that i should not try to have a lot of nice stuff...that my money could be helping other people instead. is there a line though? should you give and give till you have nothing or should you "take care of number 1" as well?
so that wasnt thoughts it was more questions. i do feel however that god created all of this for us to live joy filled lives. i know that this entails love and friendship and stuff like that, but recently i've been wondering if it doesnt include stuff as well. i mean what about modern conveniences...we can poop in a toilet and flush where-as they used to just dump it in the streets. we can take care of ourselves medically and with clean foods that wont give us random sicknesses. we can drive to see people daily instead of making the long trek to commune with friends only occasionally on our feet. whatever, you get the point. i think we all deserve this stuff. it definitely improves the quality of life, and probably helps us to interact more readily with things that we do treasure. what about not just useful stuff though. we can hear music on a pod or watch movies. well they make art, people's ideas, more readily accesible to us. thats good right? what about this computer? and the internet its connected to? is it good that you can read my thoughts? we can live in comfort more easily with stuff. granted it can get in the way and it can distract us from our true treasure but if we keep it in perspective are we ok? can i include having lots of nice things that make life easier into the list of possible good things god wants for us? will they aid us in having joy? maybe if we use them...not just have them and hoard them like treasure...but use them for what good they can be used for. it they help us understand those things which are our treasure more, help us get to know those things which are treasure more? maybe. maybe not. whatev.
Posted in: on Monday, October 09, 2006 at at 10:57 PM
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Here's where my heart was when I wrote my post...and then read yours: A few days ago, I finished a book called The Suburban Christian, Albert Hsu. In it, he recalls the many ways that he is controlled by his fascination with possessions and his dependence on those things being safe. It is a false security…at least until the exact moment when something happens to that stuff, like Hurricane Katrina taking your car for a drive and not giving it back, or you walk in a room and see your one-year old pouring his milk on your new laptop. Words like “insurance,” “deductible,” and “security system” start to rotate in your mind and you realize it’s too late to do anything to change what happened. Jesus says, “Do let your heart be led by what you own. It’s all going to disappear, or break down. Take care of your things, but pay more attention to loving God and others – and give more than you take.” (my paraphrase)
Probably only a few of us would say that we are “controlled” by stuff, or that our hearts are focused on material things. But most of us could probably see things that rob another opportunity to worship. Even the tools that help us worship can get in my way! Thus, another "reason" for Christ’s return – to free us from this constant paradox.