consumerism

Today is traditionally a big day of shopping here in the United States, the day following our Thanksgiving Day. It is fun to go out shopping, though I definitely am not a shopper. I do like to try to find something I like to wear. But above all, and this leaves everything out in the cold for me, I love to be turned loose in a good bookstore or with money to order good books, or a good book or two (budget always a factor for us).

Consumerism comes with the idea of negative connotations, though to sell and buy is just a part of life. It is when all our lives revolve around buying and selling that it can become, like anything else, idolatrous. As Jesus tells us, We cannot serve both God and Mammon/Money.

Let's enjoy good things, but lets keep our focus on where it belongs: our new life in Jesus. A new way, the way of being restored to true humanity, in which nothing replaces the centrality of relationship and relationships in our lives.

What words might you share on this big (in more ways than one) subject?