Living in a Material World

There is a story in the Bible of a rich young ruler who tells Jesus that he wants to follow Him. Here is what Jesus says in response to him: “When Jesus heard this, he said to him, ‘You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.’ When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was a man of great wealth.” (Luke 18:22-23) Why did the young ruler see this as a losing proposition? It is because we place such a high value on status and what gives us status. If the ruler were to give away all of his wealth he would be giving away his power in this world—his fame, his identity, and the respect of his peers and subordinates. If he gave it all away he would be on the same level as all of the common folks that he ruled over. That was the point that Jesus made to him that day. You really value the things in your life more than you realize. If Jesus himself was right in front of you could you surrender all that you own to follow him? It would be hard, right? We hold on to things in this life so hard that we can’t even imagine life without our stuff. Corey Ten Boom says, “Don’t hold on to things of this life too tightly, because it hurts when God has to peel your fingers off.” Often times we want the things we can’t have or hold on to the things we do have too tightly. Either way it can make you crazy.

There was an Amish gentleman giving a tour of Amish life and sites while riding a bus with a bunch of Pennsylvania tourists. One of the tourists had a question, “What is the main difference between the Amish and everyone else in this country?” The Amish man thought about it and then asked, “how many of you own a TV?” Everyone but the Amish man’s hand went up. He then asked, “How many of you think that it is having a negative effect on your family?” Again, everyones hand when up. The Amish man then asked, “How many would be willing to get rid of the TV? No hands went up! The Amish man said, “That is the difference between popular society and the Amish.”

The secret to Joy may start with holding onto things of this life a little more loosely. How is that done? Just trust God to meet your needs and give the rest to Him. It is simple, maybe too simple to comprehend. It also defies the momentum of our culture. I remember the happiest times in my life and they were times when I had literally nothing materially. No money, no fame, no home, but I had love. Love of the Father, love of my wife, and love of my children. The happiest? How is that possible? The more you have, the more you worry about what you have and how to keep it and maintain it. Having a car brings stress. Having a home brings stress. Having a job that allows you to keep all of the things you are collecting brings stress. Especially if you hate what you are doing in order to keep your life from flat lining. Some of us get to a place and we look around and wonder how we got there. How and when did I get so far off the track? Your dreams seem like a distant memory and life becomes a daily struggle. There is an answer to this but it is a radical concept; giving it all to God. Lord, take my home, take my life, and yes, even take my children. They were His all along anyway. Just surrender the care, the concern, the stress, and the worry to the one who is well equipped to handle it all. The Word of God promises to take care of all of the rest. After all, Depression is worrying about the past and Anxiety is worrying about the future. The trick is losing the worry.