Buying stuff and contentment…
Feb 8th, 2010 by ljkim
We started talking about financial contentment yesterday. This is such a wild idea in our society that it can be hard to imagine what it means. Now there’s a tendency to want to soften up the a wild idea, so that it seems less contrary to our society – I think that’s the wrong approach. Instead we need to develop our imagination for what God is suggesting. So if you were totally content financially and in terms of material possessions, how would that affect the stuff you buy? Continue Reading »
Most people aren’t ready to really learn the secret to it – so if you want you can go climb a mountain or sail the seven seas first – then come back and read the rest… But the secret comes straight from God, proven by miles of empirical data, agreed upon by believers and non-believers alike… And here it is: happiness comes from taking care of something, loving it, and watching it thrive. The bigger it is, and the more you love it, the more you’ll experience heartache because of it – but at the same time, the more joy you’ll get…
Ministry can be hard, and it can be heartbreaking, and it requires a lot of waiting… but in the end, through God’s power it pays off. You may feel like you’re losing at times, but if you’re involved in God’s ministry for you – you are on the winning team… The question is how will you hold out till the end? How can you keep perspective and not let the immediate “realities” get to you? In the Bible, God wants His people to follow Him, be faithful – love Him, and serve Him…but in the midst of these things God also wants His people to *ENJOY* the good things He brings them (cf. Jer 2:7)…
I love the fact that so many people today want to make a difference with their lives. And I love that so many people are actively looking for unique types of work in which they can make the world better. But here’s the thing about ministry: your personal ministry and your work may (or may not) overlap, they are not the same thing… So we said Martin Luther King Jr.’s job was “pastor.” But his personal ministry was as a civil rights activist. Bono is the lead singer in U2, but his personal ministry is debt relief for African nations (I know, I said that already but I want to focus on the work part).
The key to great coffee is NOT a great coffee maker… A $9.99 cheapo French press can be better than a $199.00 Braun. All you need is freshly roasted coffee beans. Now you would think that an expensive coffee maker would make better coffee. That’s what the advertisers want you to think. But if you enjoy coffee, it’s better to spend the money on getting good coffee and not on the machine…
Some people have an unspoken belief that being spiritual (or maybe even just being a better person) and being miserable go together… Billy Joel sings, “I’d rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints.” The thing is saints laugh a lot more…it’s those who follow the gods of money or sex or drugs or whatever who wind up in tears. Anyway I don’t want to argue the case that God’s way brings more joy – there’s only one way to prove it, and that’s to live it – so those of you who know me well may know that I can be a miserable like anyone else…but as I’ve been growing in holiness, humility, trusting God, I’ve also been growing in laughter, joy and fun. What I want to point out here is that the theology of misery is (unfortunately) alive and well in our secular world. 
Here’s a question I’m sometimes asked: Are you a conservative or liberal Christian? My answer is “you tell me”: On the one hand I love this historical person of Jesus, and I believe that he is the miraculously born perfect human incarnation of God through whom the universe was created. I also believe that the Bible is not just a regular book, but that it was orchestrated by God. Not that God dictated it word for word, but that through divinely ordained events, and God encounters, God used regular fallible people to create an extraordinary infallible document of who He is. Saying this gets a whole bunch of people I know in a huff – but I’m always up for discussing and debating these things in person, as well as listening to what you have to say about this…
Most people I meet like to believe they are good people, but Jesus’ Gospel begins with a very different premise: What if we’re not? What if we’re not just flawed, we say “no one’s perfect” – but what if we are really “sinful?” What if we really do pursue ego gratification in a way that would be wicked if it were applied on a large scale…we just manage to hide it and channel our ego mania into culturally acceptable forms. Now if you think this sounds obnoxious, this is the unapologetically offensive part of Jesus’ teaching… the “scandal” (Greek for “stumbling stone”) of the Cross. Jesus said that in order to be saved, one must become very honest and clear about what it is we truly need saving from (Sin in ourselves).
I’m having a bit of writer’s block at the moment, so I don’t know the best way to put this… But I know people who are either miserable or stressed or semi-miserable. I know a few who are just a few steps away from what I imagine as a living hell because of certain types of choices and mistakes made. The good news is that I believe God can use all those circumstances both good and bad to bring you where you need to go. But I would like for you to be in a happier place in life, a more joyful place…and although it’s not a wide road to happiness (it takes a bit of focus to make sure you’re on the right path), I believe it’s a straight road – it’s not so complicated that it’s impossible for you – no matter where you happen to be.