Things You Had To Have

How many things have you bought through the years that you thought you just had to have but they are still in the box or the package they came in, things that you have never used?  I heard some people on 88.5, the Family Life Network which is a Christian radio station, talking about this, this morning and I thought I would do a Tidbit about it today.

It seems that many of us are guilty of this, including me.  In my case, I have been big in garage sales and, sometimes, flea markets.  I could buy things so cheap at times I could hardly resist buying them; things I didn’t need and many things I thought I had to have that have been sitting around for years although I have gotten rid of a lot of them.  I am thankful that I have a wife that buys mainly what she needs and has very little wants.  She will buy for me or our kids or grandkids but very little for herself.  Thank the Lord, I think I have finally come to my senses and I am going to try to buy just mainly what I need and not all my wants.

I remember when I was a young boy, we had very little as far as material things go and our gifts were usually some kind of fruit.  I do remember having a bicycle with no chain that we could run and jump on and coast here and there until we ran into the back of a car and that was the end of that, as far as I can remember.  This may have contributed to my problem, but I still made the wrong choices.

Materialism is something that seems to sneak up on you and before you realize it you are hooked and it seems the more you have the more you want.  This kind of behavior can cause greed and end up in fights and quarrels and in many cases plain taking advantage of people and even deception to get what you want.  Before I got myself into all these wants and going to these sales God provided for my needs.  But it was easy to say that God was providing through these garage sales and I believe at times He did.  He does provide our needs and sometimes even our wants, but I believe we need a balance in all things.  But when we become so materialistic, that is not God’s will for our lives and it also hinders our prayers.

Read what it says in Matthew 6:33, “But seek ye first his kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”

We need to turn to God first for help.  He wants to provide for our needs, but many times we jump ahead of Him and try to provide for our own needs with our credit cards without even waiting on Him and that is why we are in debt up to our eye balls, so to speak.  Maybe that is why many of our prayers go unanswered because God knows we have no intention of going without because we will do almost anything to attain whatever we want ourselves.  We think we can’t go without whatever it is we want!!

I am typing this but no one is any more guilty of this than I am.  I can remember arguing many times with my wife over things that I thought I had to have, and believe me my wife is not one to argue so most of the time it was like I was arguing with myself just trying to get her approval so I wouldn’t feel guilty about buying what I thought I wanted or had to have.  How many of you have been there and done that?  I wouldn’t be surprised if marriages have been split up because of this problem or terrible fights have occurred.

Read what it says in James 4:1-3, “Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.”

I am ashamed of myself and I hope if you are in this situation you will be ashamed also and not just try to find an excuse for it.  I am thankful that God loves me enough to point this out to me so that I can confess it and turn from it and I hope you will also if you are caught up in this sin.  I have given you something to think about and I hope you will do the right thing.  May God bless you and yours and may you have a super day!!