The Buck Stops Here or The Roman Shade in the Bathroom
This past summer, my husband and I were able to buy a new house after 30 years of living in our old one. Because I love decorating so much, I tend to get overzealous by putting my marks on it. All well and good, as a home usually does reflect the likes of the people living in it. But, it all costs money.
I discovered I was carrying around in my head, a future list of things to buy that I wanted for my house. As a desired "Jesus-follower" and His ways, I was reminded by the Holy Spirit within to not lay up treasures on earth where moths destroy and where theifs can break in and steal, but to lay up treasures in heaven. As I meditated on this, I realized that this penchant for buying could go on and on and on, and that it could become a bad habit. If left unchecked, soon my supply could be dwindled to where we would not have any resources to "give to the poor" in the Body of Christ. In other words, our treasures on earth could chip away at our treasures in heaven, or more pointedly, that each dollar spent for us, could take away a dollar that could be spent on real needs for others. Since we have been exposed to these needs, through In Jesus' Name Ministries, (injesusname.org) we can no longer ignore "the least of these" in the Body of Christ.
I believe that it is fine to make our house a comfortable place to enjoy and for others to enjoy by creating a nice setting, but I feel, as the Holy Spirit reminded me, that overtime, if not checked, this lust of buying and even of decorating, can develop into something else that would interfere with our walk with the Lord, and of walking in His ways.
So, that brings us to the roman shade in the bathroom. As I was planning, in my mind, the new roman shade I was going to buy which covers the window in the bathroom, I thought, "What's wrong with that one?" (This conversation occured after the Holy Spirit had quickened my spirit, as referenced above) I answered myself, "Well, it's got water stains on it, and it's faded." "So, does that mean you need to get another one?" "Well, I guess not. It's not a NEED, just a WANT." Putting that in perspective, I examined the shade. It seems like I could take it down, and easily wash it in the bathtub to remove the stains. Then it seemed possible to even bleach it, and possibly re-dye it and make it a brighter and a fresher shade of green. I was getting excited about the new project that had come to my mind. This could save me about 40 dollars to be available for the needs of others.
So, the buck stops here. I am purposing to question my own wants of "prettying up" my new house, and in finding other ways to make money available to supply the needs of others, for the praise of His glory. Will you, as Christ-followers, join me in that?
I discovered I was carrying around in my head, a future list of things to buy that I wanted for my house. As a desired "Jesus-follower" and His ways, I was reminded by the Holy Spirit within to not lay up treasures on earth where moths destroy and where theifs can break in and steal, but to lay up treasures in heaven. As I meditated on this, I realized that this penchant for buying could go on and on and on, and that it could become a bad habit. If left unchecked, soon my supply could be dwindled to where we would not have any resources to "give to the poor" in the Body of Christ. In other words, our treasures on earth could chip away at our treasures in heaven, or more pointedly, that each dollar spent for us, could take away a dollar that could be spent on real needs for others. Since we have been exposed to these needs, through In Jesus' Name Ministries, (injesusname.org) we can no longer ignore "the least of these" in the Body of Christ.
I believe that it is fine to make our house a comfortable place to enjoy and for others to enjoy by creating a nice setting, but I feel, as the Holy Spirit reminded me, that overtime, if not checked, this lust of buying and even of decorating, can develop into something else that would interfere with our walk with the Lord, and of walking in His ways.
So, that brings us to the roman shade in the bathroom. As I was planning, in my mind, the new roman shade I was going to buy which covers the window in the bathroom, I thought, "What's wrong with that one?" (This conversation occured after the Holy Spirit had quickened my spirit, as referenced above) I answered myself, "Well, it's got water stains on it, and it's faded." "So, does that mean you need to get another one?" "Well, I guess not. It's not a NEED, just a WANT." Putting that in perspective, I examined the shade. It seems like I could take it down, and easily wash it in the bathtub to remove the stains. Then it seemed possible to even bleach it, and possibly re-dye it and make it a brighter and a fresher shade of green. I was getting excited about the new project that had come to my mind. This could save me about 40 dollars to be available for the needs of others.
So, the buck stops here. I am purposing to question my own wants of "prettying up" my new house, and in finding other ways to make money available to supply the needs of others, for the praise of His glory. Will you, as Christ-followers, join me in that?
posted by Patti Blount @ 10:33 AM
2 Comments:
At 4/10/2011 9:18 PM ,
Court Wood said...
What an encouragement in Christ to read your article. This is a struggle that all of us living in America face. We all spend more than we need to. Even with our present "difficult economy" our struggles to feed our children and live do not come anywhere near the day to day struggles of Christians living in the Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist, and Communist nations. Thank you Pattie for sharing this, and for the sacrificial life you and Tom live in Jesus Christ in sharing with your fellow Christians. You are a model for us all to follow, even as you follow Christ.
At 4/28/2011 6:31 PM ,
Beth Yarbrough said...
This is something I began to struggle with as I watched my friends doing so many things to make their homes more "homey". I wrestled with it because I sensed the Lord impressing upon me the same things written in your blog entry. Everything belongs to Him, so how could I possibly spend His resources on my selfish desires when there are so many in need? Thankfully He is teaching me to be content and I have learned to love the things He's already provided for us. I, too, desire to lay up treasures in Heaven, which I hope are the lives I may have touched in some way here on earth.
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