1 Corinthians 6:12- "Everything is permissible for
me"--but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible for
me"--but I will not be mastered by anything
Short verse...but very powerful words. Paul is stating a simple economic principle…wants
verses needs. We want ….but do we really need…everything that we
have. Do we own the ‘things’…or do they
own us?
I understand this all to well…you see one way to fill
loneliness is to shop with your free time.
Did I really need everything I bought on some of those trips…probably
not…but it filled the lonely hours after the divorce with something to do. I loved the positive comments I got the next
day at school when I wore the new outfit…or shoes. I didn’t realize just how out of control I
was till I moved…and needed 3 closets to house all the…things….I had bought.
Sure…its okay to shop….and God blesses us every day with
nice things….but when we make the decisions to buy a new car…just because we
want one…or we buy another pair of white shoes…just because they are cute….we
may be on the way to being mastered by materialism. Do we spend more time
watching TV…or playing on the computer than we do with God…or working for him
in some way? It doesn’t seem like an
idol….but if you just have to have it …if it is just something to ‘fill’ time…and
you don’t really need it…it may have more control over you than you think.
God …help me to reexamine the things that I do and the stuff
that I buy. You have allowed me to live
in a great world of freedom…and you have blessed me with more than enough resources
to pamper myself with things ….but this morning I ask you to help me stop and
ask you how you would have me spend my day…let my love for you drive what I do
with the blessings you allow me to have. Help me to be satisfied with what you
say I need. Amen.
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