Well, he got that one right.
We do. I do, anyway.
And owning stuff isn't bad. Wealthy, and happy, and healthy people still go to heaven--people who have not materially suffered a day in their lives.
Stuff isn't the problem.
We are.
You know the feeling--the rush of wanting. That urgent feeling that says "I have to have this right now."
You know the name for it, too.
Lust.
That's the problem. The desperate wanting.
It doesn't matter what it focuses on--a donut, a pair of jeans, a car, a job, a date, a vacation, recognition, someone else's wife...
When he was a baby, my youngest son had a t-shirt that said "I don't know what I want, but I want it NOW!"
That's the problem.
And there's only one solution:
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. After fasting for forty days and forty nights, He was hungry. The tempter came to Him and said, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." Jesus answered, "It is written, 'Man does not live by bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'"--Matthew 4:1-4
So, how to fight lust? With every word that comes from the mouth of God.
Starting today. Storing it up in our heart. Because we will need it. Oh, yes, we will.
Will it make me stop wanting stuff? Heck, no.
But it will defend me against the day that I do.
It will help me remember what is really important, what lasts.
It will help me think past the donut.
Truth said Mrs P, the only way out of temptation is to fight it with the word.
ReplyDeleteAnd as God so wonderfully works, I had to learn a new way to do so right after I wrote this. Sigh. And Thank you, God.
DeleteI love that you used that picture. It totally made me want to see what you were writing about. Oh, have I gratified the sinful desires of my heart before. And tasted the grace after I have realized my mistakes. Grace and forgiveness taste so much better.
ReplyDeleteHm. I think I need to go store up some more of His word! heh! Thanks.
ReplyDeleteYou're right, it isn't riches but the lust after them (and after the attendant "stuff") that trips us up. Very well put!
ReplyDelete'thinking past the donut.' Hmmmmm...you have the best way of saying things. (btw, I may be one of your only readers who actually SAW Frank Zappa in concert, B.J. (Before Jesus)
ReplyDelete:-)Another random, useless fact.
I so like knowing this about you, Jody...I once worked with a man who ran his concert sound board. This man and his wife had triplets a few years later and Frank sent them all matching t-shirts that said something babies should probably not hear, but was, honestly, funny. Zappa was a smart, if misled, man.
DeleteThis was a great post and I like the comparisons you put in to make your points.
ReplyDeleteI'm visiting today from Thursday's Favorite Things.
Very uplifting Blog! Thanks for posting! came over from the Thursday Favorite Things party!
ReplyDeleteRemembering what is really important, what lasts - that is an art, isn't it. Turning down the volume on the unimportant ethereal stuff, listening in to the quiet. Good post, funny, yet very deep. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteYes, ma'am. Listening to the quiet is important.
DeleteBut there are times, too, when we need to fill that quiet--with the right stuff, of course. I am more and more convinced that we do a very poor job of training ourselves for defense against the day of temptation. By the time I got through writing this, I knew that I had, at least, done this very poorly. Evil is real. Temptation will come. I need to arm myself with the Word of God now, in the quiet, so that when my own day of testing comes, I will have a ready sword.
Hi Mrs. P!
ReplyDeleteThank you for making a comment on my blog so i could find you. What a hilarious picture for a serious topic. I prayed about it this morning. How to fight lust and envy? Yes I do believe the Word of God will help us a step at a time. We have to be more grateful for what we have than looking at what we don't!!! there will always be something to hanker for! Patsy from
HeARTworks