In Mark 4:18-19 Jesus said, in the parable of the sower, "Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth, and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful."
© 2009 Donna L. Watkins - Squirrel With Watermelon
Do you remember when you were young, single and broke? Maybe you're old, married and still broke, but most likely you've got more stuff than you had when you were single. Younger years can be consumed by the wanting of more ... and then when you find yourself down the road with a house and children to care for, a job producing a good income, a bit of money stashed away for rainy days, you would think things would be as you wanted them when you were in those "wishing years." Did acquiring more wealth or stuff make all your worries go away? No. In many ways you've got more worries. A house to maintain and pay for, debts from providing for your family and education, people you love and don't want hurt ... the list goes on. If you're going to worry, you'll always have something to worry over. The more stuff you have the more you have to maintain, protect and find places to put it all. Lives get cluttered with things and sometimes it's hard to see relationships in the realm of importance that they truly are. Advertising tells us we need all this stuff ... God tells us we need Him and we're to love others.
If your significance is in what you have and accomplished and your security lies with how much you have stashed away, then you're anchored to the wrong piers for a fulfilling life. Worry will choke the life right out of you, but making God first in your life, allowing Him to provide and protect through the use of your hands and heart, will make life what it was truly designed to be.
True happiness is in trusting God for your needs, allowing Him to determine which "wants" to have, and knowing that His timing for stuff is more accurate than yours. You may not get what you want, but you'll get something better.
We had a long list of wants in our young years of marriage and at times we would wait and pray for God to provide them and He did so in miraculous ways, but like Israel wandering in the wilderness, forgetting their crossing of the Red Sea, we too would allow our wants to overshadow God's provision. It ends in debt no matter how much money you make. The wealthy just have a higher expectation of wants that are more costly. Nobody is immune to the deceitfulness of riches.
Don't let the television, magazines and newspapers tell you what you have to have. We stopped all of those things in our home for a period of time when we chose to get out of debt. We wanted to hear God's voice on what we were to have and focus on what was more important to us - to be debt-free. That want was higher than all the rest because we knew it would provide as true a security factor as the world would give us. You can go a long way without a job if you don't have a mortgage, car payments and credit card debt. God never intended for us to live in debt and provide for ourselves through the banking systems which are totally focused on providing for themselves.
Have you been deceived also? It's never too late for God to work in your life. As long as you're still breathing He is there willing to guide you through. Take a day to get away and ponder this. Get God's Word on it and make a commitment to change your lifestyle. Simpler living is so gratifying and peaceful compared to what the world and advertisers have to offer.
Haven't you already discovered that most of what you wanted, and now have, didn't satisfy even until the time it was paid off? Don't get deceived by the one who desires you to look everywhere but to God, our Maker, Creator and King. Choose ye this day whom you will serve (Joshua 24:15). You cannot serve God and money (Matthew 6:24).
Get some tips on being frugal at The Frugal Life.com and The Frugal Life News.com.
For motivation, watch this video on The Story of Stuff.
Hearing God's Voice
The book that is having a monumental impact on my life and way of living is one called, How To Hear God's Voice by Mark and Patti Virkler. The clear and detailed content with loads of Scriptural backup, along with the interactive process of applying what you are learning, is yielding a lot of spiritual fruit in my life and the life of my husband, the counselor, who is now promoting the book to everyone he knows. Your view of the present, past and future will never be the same when you begin to commune with God as He always intended us to do since He walked with man in the Garden of Eden. For those who yearn for a deeper relationship with the Father, this book will take you there if you read and apply it. The author promises that and I do too!
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© 2009 Donna L. Watkins - This article was reprinted with permission from TheNatureInUs.com.
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