do you ever want to hit someone in the head to try to knock some sense into them?? or maybe shake them aggressively? i do. (i haven't yet though. they'd probably just end up w/ a headache but still no sense) i get so frustrated when i see people spend (waste) a lot of money on material things. i know someone who just got a $300 pair of sunglasses. (it was a gift...but i'm not even going to get into that) i can't even wrap my head around that. who buys $300 sunglasses???? it makes no sense. you can buy a pair for $5. to be honest, i don't even understand spending $40 for a shirt. i'm cheap when it comes to clothes. i don't even really like to shop. (i know, weird, huh?) but all these THINGS, they're gonna break. they're gonna get lost. you're going to not like them in 5 years (or a month). these THINGS don't last.
"Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do no break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will also be." Matthew 6:19-21
why can't people get that? why can't people see how senseless and fruitless it is to spend so much on material things? not only is it stupid because these things will break in a short time, but also because there is such poverty everywhere around us!!! i would still consider it vain to spend vast amounts of money on things even IF there was no poverty! the money we throw around on meaningless things could do sooooo much for others. the money that we use to fulfill our greed could be the means of someone getting enough food & water to simply LIVE.
"The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, 'What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?' And he said, 'I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.' But God said to him, 'Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?' So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God." Luke 12:16-21
"Greed" by Shawn McDonald
disclaimer: i realize this is something my blog readers understand very well, and many of you have sacrificed and given of yourselves so that a child could have a family, an education, so that a family could have a meal and live. This post is NOT pointed to anyone, though we could all use the reminder.
disclaimer #2: i have made many foolish decisions with my money. i have wasted it, i have spent it greedily, and i selfishly wished that i had more. i am just a stumbling fool after all!! But Father forgive me and may i learn to hold dear what is truly valuable and let go of what is not.
9 comments:
Yes m'am- you are preaching to me. Love the song- can't wait to play if for my kiddo tomorrow- and pray about it, too! Thanks!
I think we need to be reminded, and to remind one another of this more often Megan.
And when we really stop to look and consider how relative it is, the spending I mean, it's actually even worse. For example, to spend $5 on a pair of sunglasses is actually exorbitant when you consider how much that $5 can do in other cultures.
Buying bottled water for example... I don't understand it. We have fresh, clean water coming from pipes into our homes unlike a vast majority of the world and we still go buy it in little plastic bottles.
i have forgotten how to shp. its true, its sad. i used to be a great shopper, looking for deals stuff like that. spending money is of no interest to me anymomre. i could see a shirt reasonablly priced, get interested, and say "i have shirts" and move on. and it is all because of Haiti... (i say it like it's Haiti's fult)
i totally understand where you are coming from! how can people find pleasure in giving off money?! especially when others acctually NEED it!! -- it should be a sin.
someone should really make a spell-check button!!
Oh dear, you are NOT going to like Los Angeles....
i agree shannon, especially Santa Clarita...those guys with their H2s (or H-fakes as my sister and I call them) act like they own the road.
one time i knew this guy down there who was like that, megan, and i did hit him. so hard his brains fell out. i picked them up, reprogrammed them and put them back. now he only buys $5 sunglasses. you should try it.
but seriously, i agree. check out Luke 16:1-13. a somewhat odd parable but i think the main meaning is: use the money you have here for eternal purposes (e.g. NOT for $300 sunglasses).
a spell check on here would be nice, Lizzie. but it's okay, we can still understand it! check this out:
Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a toatl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.
hum, elias, i would give that a try...but i've never reprogrammed anyone's brain before!! i'm afraid i would screw it up even worse! like, instead of buying $300 sunglasses, he would just start stealing them!! i'll leave the reprogramming human brains to you...
i don't even have $300!! no, that's not really true. great post again, megan! i agree with everyone that a reminder is not a bad thing.
Thanks for the reminder!!!
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