Matthew 6 - explore what this passage means to us today, especially the money related bits! Suggested word limit of 1000 words. You can read the text online here in the NRSV version, which is my personal favourite.
Other (more right-wing!) translations can be found here
I have some commentary books which people are welcome to borrow.
Please feel free to share any thoughts, questions or resources in the comments.
6 comments:
I'm probably addicted to shopping. I read the Bible chapter you linked to. What does it say to me? Not much, if I'm being completly honest.
Why do I buy something everyday? There are loads of reasons and none of them are about worrying that I haven't got enough of something. I'm not storing stuff away because I'm worried I'm going to run out. I shop because I'm bored and there's not much else to do. I go shopping because I'm lonely and the shops are where everyone is. I can go through a whole day without talking to anyone and I know that if I go in a shop the person on the desk will be nice to me. I buy stuff because every day s a long day and going shopping is as good a way as any to fill in a few hours. Because I'm fed up and buying something new makes me feel excited and puts a smile on my face. |The thing I've bought makes me feel happier when I look at it or wear it.
I don't buy loads of shoes or clothes, but I do spend hours going round all the shops until I find the thing I want. I always buy it whether I can affrod to or not.
I don't think Jesus would understand my reasons for shopping. He doesn't understand people who like having nice things. He had loads of friends and probably wasn't lonely. He didn't care about fashion or fitting in. He lived in a different world without the pressures that we have.
It says you can't love God and money and you have to hate one or the other. What if the one I like best is the one that gives me what I need? Going to the shops helps mein a way that an invisible God can't.
Hello Anonymous, really pleased that you've chosen to engage with us here on the blog.
From what you wrote, it seems that your motives for shopping are not all that bad! We can meet with God when we meet other people with kindness; in the social interactions you describe with shop assistants you can encounter God in them, and they can encounter God in you. So shopping does not have to exclude God. Jesus spent a lot of time with people, and if this is your way of doing the same thing then so be it.
The other thought I had was about the permanence of the happiness you gain from buying things. In the Bible passage Jesus reminds us that we are eternal beings, and that this stage of our existence will pass away along with all of the stuff we've bought. The happiness that comes from possessions is fleeting; often fading after a few days, sometimes longer, but in the end you can't keep any of it when the Kingdom comes. And you won't miss it.
Hey Anonymous... lovely to meet you on here. Your post has certainly given me heaps to think about too :0)
Hmmm its very interesting what you say about WHY you need to shop: feeling bored, lonely, opportunities to chat to 'nice' folk, wanting to feel excited, happy etc. Can really relate to that. Actually think that Jesus would understand those reasons and feelings too though. Afterall He does want us to feel happy and content in life, as we are all so precious and dearly loved by Him. He also wants the very best for us aswell. BUT, I think that in our current society we are obsessed with the idea that accumulating 'things', and the buzz we get out of shopping etc, is a means of achieving this. Like Andy says, Jesus is offering us complete happiness and contentment, not based on 'things' necessarily but on a relationship with Him... something that will outlast the tests of time, that won't go rusty or get stolen, that will even go with you after you've died.
Incidentally, think Jesus was often very lonely during His life. Oh yes, most of the time He was surrounded by heaps of people and even had a group of close mates... but every one of them fled when things started getting really tough!!!
Does Jesus make you feel completley happy then? He's just so unreal and not there that there's no competition for me. I'm in control of my feelings when I go to the shops. I can decide to cheer myself up by buying something and I know I'll feel better. But with God you feel lonely so you say a prayer and you might as well not have said anything cos there's no reply and no hug.
Yes He does. But when I say 'happy' think we really mean that old fashioned term 'joy'.. joy isn't about having a big smile plastered all over your face and laughing all the time, its more about deep contentment, satisfaction, something that is a lot more lasting and permanent somehow.
Hmmm, can fully understand your puzzlements with this 'invisible God' thing though... must seem strange us talking about someone who we can't actually see. But the things is, to know His reality we have to change our perspective a bit, to look beyond our 'concrete reality' to something entirely different.... a bit like tuning into a radio station, cos sometimes it takes a while twiddling with all the knobs and cutting out all the crackly 'interference' until you get a clear sound!
God does draw near to us and answers prayer too... you know, all those 'one liners' we send His way when things are tough etc. Thing is, He often does this in ways we don't expect or sometimes even want. One solution, Anonymous, would be to tell God all about your puzzlements, how things are for you at the mo and also to ask HIm to make Himself real to you. Doesn't have to be in any fancy words or anything... just talk to Him as you would anyone else... feels a bit odd, I know, but give it a bash. Then wait and see what happens... you may actually be surprised!!!
I've written a poem as my response to this challenge. It opens in the Ikea car park. Here it is...
Do the Seats Go Back?
Do the seats go back?
Will it all fit in?
So glad they had the black
(The old one's in the bin).
"Make do and mend"? I laugh,
It's cheaper just to sling it;
With eyes turned blind to poverty,
'Cos afterall, I'm worth it.
Devouring glossy magazines,
A monthly half-head foils;
That top is just so me-me-me
This rug, that jug, those flowers.
Re-decorate the bedroom,
A tower of catalogues;
Conservatory, extension
For Sale - not big enough.
A new design is coming out
A must-have in the blue
I've always wanted one of those
That bag, this coat, those shoes.
And in the background, a hushed voice
Birds of the air and lilies;
I'm running like a pagan,
Grasping, storing, spinning.
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