It’s Not About What You Don’t Have, It’s About What You DO Have

This time of year it’s easy to look at all the deals on things we want at the various stores and want to buy almost everything.  We see all of the “stuff" that we don’t own and we instantly want it because someone we know has it and it’s really cool, or they are really cool.

The problem with that thinking is that there is only one thing that we need more of in our lives.  It is not something we’re going to find in an ad.  It’s not something you can buy at the store either.  What we need more of in our lives is God.  Yet, we tend to clutter up our lives with so any things that only keep us from connecting with Him.  We buy bigger and bigger TVs, better computers and gaming systems, Apple’s latest and greatest items, phones with the latest and greatest apps, and so much more.  All of which distract us more and more from God and our relationships with Him.

Now I’m not saying that we can’t go out and buy some of these things.  My point today is that we need to evaluate all of the “stuff” that we own and buy.  If we have so much that it’s keeping us from God, then we may need to reevaluate our real need for it all.   Don’t let all the “stuff” get between you and your relationship with God. 

If we are truly pursing all of the “stuff” of life how then can your relationship with Him grow?  It’s at least something to think about. 

If The Shoe Fits – Don’t Buy It!

Have you ever heard someone talking about a purchase they just made and discussing that they “just had to buy it”? What forced them to make the purchase?  Were they facing the barrel of a gun and being forced by the gunman to make that purchase?

The reason I bring it up is because all too often we Americans think that we just have to buy stuff because we saw it at the store, other people have it, or it was on sale. 

Now I have to thank my parents for my love of shopping.  I love to go through the sale ads every week and see all the deals and circle all the stuff that we should buy.  They really taught me how to hunt down a good deal.  But, I’ve found one thing for myself over the years.  Sometimes the best deals are those that you don’t purchase.  If I don’t have the money for shopping, just maybe I shouldn’t be going.  Why step into Kohl’s, Best Buy, or Menards if I don’t have the money to buy anything there?  (BTW – they are all favorite stores of mine, I’m not hating on them at all.)  All we do when walking into a store is tempt ourselves to spend money.

This is where I hit you hard:  YOU NEED TO HAVE A BUDGET.  But, not only do you need to have a budget (even a monkey can be trained to put numbers on paper), you also have to stick to that budget.  If you have $500 for food this month, then you have to find a way to spend only that much on food.  Same thing goes for clothes, gas, and all the other categories!

If you need help working out a budget, then you and I need to talk.  This is a passion of mine, and I’d like to help you get there.  I can show you the principles of doing the budget, and we don’t even have to talk real numbers unless you want.  The thing to know is this:  God doesn’t want you to be in debt.  You are slave to the lender (see Proverbs 22:7) and it’s time to end that relationship and get closer in the most important relationship in your life:  God.

Yep, I was there!

On Thursday and Friday I was one of the crazy people who were out shopping the Black Friday deals.  I’d researched the deals for at least a month and had a full game plan in hand when we went to do our shopping.  I didn’t feel that we had to wait in line for hours before a store opened for anything we wanted to get.  We just went for some good deals and fun with one another.

For the most part our experience was very positive.  Other than the guy Noah is calling Godzilla who knocked him over at Wal-Mart by diving at the video game display, everyone else was really nice.  The workers weren’t all that stressed overall and were friendly.  We lasted over 7 hours out shopping before we called it a day.  That is 7 hours without sleep in fact – when we normally would have been sleeping.  Yes, crazy – I know!

I bring all of this up because I wanted to point out that there is a good way and a bad way to do things like Black Friday shopping.  We went prepared knowing what was on sale and even used store maps when available to know where the deals would be before we stepped into the stores.  We’d also scouted out some of the stuff the weekend prior so we knew sizes to buy, etc.  We were prepared, we knew what we wanted, and we went out and got it.  Sure, there were some changes to the plan due to circumstances, but being prepared the way we were allowed us to adjust on the fly without any major issues in doing so

How often do you have a game plan when it comes to your spiritual life?  Do you have a plan on what you’d like to study in His word?  Do you plan out that you’ll pray every morning while at breakfast or at the coffee shop?  Do you make Jesus a priority and make sure you get the time with Him that you really desire?  Sure things will happen to get in the way or change your plans, but when you have a plan of attack you’ll get what you want in this area as well. 

If you truly desire a life with God that has Him at the center and not you, then you have to be prepared.  You have to have a game plan and execute it.  If you are prepared for studying the Bible, prayer, fellowship with others, etc. etc., then you’ll be able to easily handle bumps that come in your spiritual path and still get the most out of your spiritual walk with Jesus.