I like stuff. I like to get stuff. I like to give stuff. But all the stuff can so easily distract. As we step into this season of stuff, I would encourage you, as I strive myself, to stay guarded from the love of stuff. Oh, it's fun, and I am still going to buy stuff, but it seems we have to be diligent not to be carried away in the seduction of stuff.
As I thought about this today I was reminded of a passage in Deuteronomy--so I went there:
"So it shall be, when the Lord your God brings you into the land of which He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give you large and beautiful cities which you did not build, houses full of all good things, which you did not fill, hewn-out wells which you did not dig, vineyards and olive trees which you did not plant--when you have eaten and are full--then beware, lest you forget the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage." (6:10-12)
Here is the temptation of mankind, we beseech the Lord with everything in us when we are "in bondage"--in the midst of suffering--then once He has freed us and blessed us, and the "slavery" has subsided, we forget. When we have eaten and are full, we as people tend to grow numb. Therefore, keep watch.
Though some have truly suffered through this economic crunch, we as a nation are saturated with stuff--we have eaten...and eaten...and eaten, and are very full. I pray we would not be seduced by all the stuff; that our hearts would be devoted to the God worthy of our praise. So join me, as "Black Friday" approaches, in keeping our eyes set on the only One who can fulfill our every desire.
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