A Study in Materialism and it's antidote?
Giving
Often people attempt to live their lives backwards; they try to have more things, or more money, in order to do more of what they want, so they will be happier. The way it actually works is the reverse. ~Margaret Young
By:
Jon Winslow
Intro:
Just two weeks ago I was in Radio Shack looking at a pair of head phones I wanted. Though merely forty dollars, I couldn't at first bring myself to buy them. Why? Because that was money I could give to God, and allow for Him to use it for His glory. I didn't buy them. But a mere week later I did. What was this battle that was going on inside me? It was the battle between materialism, and my faith. Reasoning sent me back and forth, changing my mind dozens of times. "Should I return God's money directly to Him and allow Him to bless others with it, or should I bless myself?" "Do I really need head phones?" "Or do I want them?" "What is the Biblical standard on issues like this?" "Is there a right or wrong decision to make here?" "I will use the headphones to bring me closer to God, so that makes it ok." The battle continued to be waged on. Materialism's heart can be summed up by the bumper sticker, "he who dies with the most toys wins." Using this as a guideline we will be measuring both Materialism and Christianity to see which one serves us most. We will examine the three most basic and common measurements we use everyday to answer the question; will buying the head phones, or giving the money to God serve me better? These proverbial yardsticks are, how we do feel about it, what are the time considerations, and the most important, how much will it cost me?
Intro Materialism
Materialism is much more than we often perceive it to b ...