The Deceitfulness Of Riches

When I went to Walmart to get a few kitchen things yesterday, the lady at the till blatantly told me that she hated Christmas. I had to ask her why. She said that it was because many people are pressured to buy and spend more money than they have or need to. And still they are never satisfied with the things they receive. There is always something else they want a few weeks down the road. (She referred to her teenage son.) She said Christmas is sickening because of greed and the temptation to waste money when there are so many people in the world that have nothing. She told me she can't wait until Christmas is over.

Here is Osha with a headache. I think he can't wait until Tim stops taking pictures.

I feel sad that Christmas, which should be a joyful celebration of Christ's birth, is viewed in such a negative way by some people. But I have to admit, the cashier had a point.

I have never been tempted to spend money I don't have, nor buy overly expensive gifts. However, I do feel guilty many times for the things I do have when others have so little. Sometimes I wish I lived a hundred years ago when life was simple and gifts that people gave at Christmas were hand-made out of sheer love for one another. From stories I heard as a girl, I know that every gift back then was appreciated and cherished because of the thought behind the gift, not the gift itself.

Believe it or not, but I liked life better when Brian and I were first married and had nothing. I enjoyed most the little things in life: walking hand-in-hand with Brian in a park, sharing my hopes and dreams with Brian as he held me close, drawing pictures, sewing my own clothes, baking home-made bread and blackberry pies, and learning to play the piano on an old dilapidated out-of-tune piano. Brian and I didn't have much material things, but we had each other, love, a healthy baby, a beat-up pick-up truck, and oh yeah, a motorcycle. Brian would often take me for rides on the back of his shiny red motorcycle:

It was his pride and joy. He would drive slowly on country roads with me behind. I was scared of motorcycles, so he wouldn't go over a certain speed, even though his motorcycle was highly powered. (He used to boast about that to me all the time.) I even rode on the back of his motorcycle when I was pregnant with my first son. I don't think my mother ever knew. She would worry too much, and I didn't want to tarnish her angelic view of my husband. My mom adored him and still does.

Over the years I have found that money can sometimes take away the joy of simple pleasures.

The Bible says that the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things can enter our hearts and lives and choke out the message of God's Word.

"But the worries of the world,

and the deceitfulness of riches,

and the desires for other things

enter in and choke the Word,

and it becomes unfruitful.

Mark 4:19

This verse proves true at Christmas too. We can be so concerned about the desire to buy gifts for those we love and be so worried about the money to pay for those gifts that we choke out the true meaning of Christmas: that God sent His Son, Jesus, to be born on earth in a manger, as a miraculous gift of love to all of us.

Christmas should be a time to reveal the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Don't allow greed and worry to make you unfruitful for God.

Let's spend less money and enjoy what we have. Let's give more to God and others by being kind, considerate, and loving to all those we meet. Let's share the message of Christ's birth by our actions and words, which is much more valuable than costly gifts.