A Battle WIth Consumerism

I've got to admit; I have fallen for the religion of consumerism.  American christendom is plagued with consumerism.  Our "sanctuaries" are similar to movie theaters.  Our lobbies are like shopping malls with their fountains, waterfalls and coffee shops.  An increasing number of pastors teach a gospel of prosperity: the more you give God, the more He will give back to you.  Isn't this more of an investment strategy rather than The Gospel?

I admit it; I have consumerist thoughts: How am I going to be able to put money away for retirement?  God reminds me, "The disciples never had a retirement plan."  How can I make life better or more comfortable for my son and I?  God answers, "How can you make life better for someone else?"  How am I going to make it month-to-month?  God replies, "Most of my children around the world wonder how they will make it day-to-day?"

For years, I have believed that we are to walk by faith.  I have had to have constant reminders about what it means to live by faith.  There have been times God has called me to live by faith, to go on missions where I did not know where the money and resources would come from.  I went and he was faithful to provide.  I went out on faith when it came to adoption.  "I am not sure I will make a good dad," I protested.  God answered, "Look to me and I will show you how."  Now God has called me to bring an orphan over from Latvia to host him during Christmas.  It was a decision that would have to be made quickly.  I asked friends to pray whom I know would seek God's will.  The answer they got back from God was an emphatic, "Yes, do this!"  Of course, I have no idea how I will come up with $2,500.00.  Maybe God is calling me to look at my budget and see what I can cut out in order to benefit someone else.

All I know is that over the past couple of days, I have been constantly reminded of Jesus' words, "Whoever seeks to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it."  This is day three of the Journey to bring Elvis.  I have to admit, doubt plagues me once again.  I am at 10% of the funds needed to bring Elvis to America.  A more scarier thought is, "What if God calls me to adopt this young man?"  I have NO IDEA where that money would come from as this is a much costlier proposition in the ways of finances and time.  I am constantly putting this thought out of my mind due to fear and paralysis.

This I do know; when God gets a hold of your life and heart, He will completely wreck it.  This is a good thing.  Unlike the way we wreck things, when God wrecks, He rebuilds us to be stronger.  He is wrecking my materialistic and consumeristic mind.  I know I will survive it but I am just not sure how.  This is what it means to live by faith, not by finances.

The New Oppression

While there were many causes to the Civil War, the greatest catalyst for the conflict was the issue of "the rights of the few" (aristocratic, Southern slave owners), States rights (to protect the rights of the few) and entitlement.  It was during these dark days of American history where many American's lost their lives over the issue of "rights and entitlements".  It was the rights of the few that allowed oppression to continue decades after slavery with Jim Crowe Laws, violation of civil rights and the formation of elitist racial superiority groups and agendas.

We live in a new period of oppression and yet it operates just as it did in the days of the Roman Empire, Nazi Germany and American slavery.  It is the oppression of freedom.  It is an oxymoron indeed, but it is the demanded "rights" and "entitlement" of the few that have encroached on the freedom of the many.  The spectrum of those who feel entitled range from the affluent to the impoverished, whether they be politicians or welfare system abusers.  The demand for "individual freedoms" has given way to entitlement, individualism and immorality at the cost of a healthy society and completely destroys any sense of community.

This demand for the "new freedom" has reeked havoc on our society, especially our children, in the following forms:

• Countless are the numbers of parents who question when they will get "me time".  Here is a clue: Once you decided to have a child, you will rarely get "me time" because your most important investment on time will come in the way of how you build into your child; not yourself.

• Adolescence has been extended from ages 11 - 29 (and growing) because of the insistence on young people's "right" to find themselves and put off becoming an adult.  Numerous young adults are returning to the former "empty nest" due to the inability to mature and take responsibility for their own lives.

• "No fault/Uncontested Divorce" is an inexpensive and easy option for getting out of an "unhappy" marriage.  Few people are willing to live under the concept of sacrifice, forgiveness and "love beyond emotion and feelings".  As a result, our divorce rate in America closes in on 60%!  Are 60% of divorces TRULY a result of infidelity and/or abuse?  If that is the case, that is an even more alarming indictment against the immaturity of adults in America!

• Parents, coaches and umpires have come to physical altercations in front of children all because of some "bad call" or that some game is at stake.  It is no longer about team work, sportsmanship and teaching children how to play together.

• School systems in America have resorted to "cheating" scandals in an effort to make their school system and teachers look better then they really are.  We no longer teach children "how to think" rather we teach them "what to think".

• An alarming number of children each year (nearly 500,000) are place in a dysfunctional system known as the foster care system due to the inability for parents to properly parent their children. What is worse, few of these children actually get the help they need while in the system making one to wonder if the child were better off left in one dysfunctional system over another.

• Political systems and agendas are frequently tied to religious viewpoints that claim that God is a Republican or Democrat, socialist or libertarian, male or female, and so on.  In reality, Jesus claimed that his kingdom was not of this world, so why do we keep behaving as if it were?  

• Countless adult agendas that promote sexualized and popularized children (children's pageants, "disney-esque" pop stars, alarming rate of internet child pornography) continue to rise as marketing sees children as objects to be marketed to and exploited.

• The homosexual agenda that has made the genius move to take an issue that, for countless centuries has been considered a moral issue, to a "civil rights" issue.  Riding the coattails of the homosexual agenda, organizations such as NAMBLA (North American Man-Boy Love Association) are pushing to lower the age of consent and endorsing homosexual relationships are trying to legalize pedophilia - all in the name of "freedom".  Homosexuality is a moral issue, not a civil rights issue.  Abortion, homosexuality and pornography have all cowardly hidden behind "freedom of speech" clauses all at the cost of societal decency.  Can anyone, with any good conscience, not see where this downhill slippery slope leads to?  If the homosexual agenda wins in the arena of civil rights, media continues to sexualize our children, and if the age of consent is lowered, do we really think pedophilia will decrease?

So, what will it take to correct these problems?  In short, it will take adults finally growing up to be adults and having the understanding that, for the betterment of society, we need to die to our own individual and personal pursuits of "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness".  Adults need to regain the status of protectors of the vulnerable - especially our children and for the sake of our society, we need to put aside our own "rights, entitlements and false freedom" so that our children may have a future.

But what else are we to expect from a culture that has defined their Christianity in terms of moralistic (God wants me to be good), therapeutic (God wants me to be happy), narcissistic (my faith is private and all about me and God), deism (there is a god and I define him how I want)?  The worse question is one would have to ask, where does Americans get this spiritual direction?  It would obviously have to be from American pulpits that preach a gospel of prosperity, individual salvation, a feel-good God devoid of judgment and hell, and worship that makes me happy.  This is the "new spiritual freedom" that has little to do with authentic Christianity.

I believe Jesus said it best when he said, "Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it." (Matthew 10:39)

In a nutshell, America needs to grow up and quite pursuing their own individual agendas.