Deadly Sin #4: Greed

I began writing this blog entry Saturday but had a little case of writers block, saved what little I had, and put it away. Sunday, I went to church and guess what the pastor's sermon was on? Yup, you probably guessed, Greed. He practically wrote this entry for me. You can watch the sermon on UStream at this link: http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/21051443
Press pause, let it load for a while and fast forward to the beginning of the sermon at 14 min 30 sec.

God refers to us as rivers several times in the Bible. We should act like rivers in our lives to avoid being greedy. What flows in, should flow out. If we are dammed up, and we keep all that we get, then we are subject to damnation. See the correlation? If not, let me elaborate.
We have made religion about collecting enough God to fill up our dam and then we stop searching for Him, we stop praying, we stop going to church, until our dam is empty and then we go back for more. We have completely perverted the idea of religion. We need to seek Him every day. He is a God of daily bread, not annual bread. If you seek Him once in awhile, your faith, and your fruits, will go stale. God is a renewer. If you use the talents and gifts He's given you, He will multiply them and give you more fruits.
Don't reserve your energy, your gifts, your God, for your use alone. Give them away, use them. God is the source to the river that flows through us. If we forgive, we can receive forgiveness. We loves because God loves. If we do not do these things, we are being greedy. We are attempting to keep the blessings to ourselves. We create damns in our lives of both material things, and spiritual gifts and blessings.

Matthew 6:19-21

"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

The rules of the Earth say that things decay, rust, break with time. Why would we invest in these things?
Greed is most often assimilated to the excessive desire for money. What about hoarding? Hoarding has been going on for years but is only most recently coming into the public eye as a problem due to television. It creates anxiety and complexity, absorbs time, and causes you to have too many choices, and slows your decision making. We can live simpler lives by de-cluttering them.
How many pairs of shoes do you own? Teeshirts? Handbags? We should give them away as soon as we don't use them anymore. Don't keep them for 10 years until nobody can use them. That is selfish, that is greed.
I am going to go through all of my things here in NYC and donate whatever I don't need or wear anymore to the Salvation Army or another charity that accepts clothing. Then, I am also going to take a few days to go back to CT and go through all of my old things stored at my parents house and give away most of that as well. I'm sure it'll feel like a weight has been lifted, like I accomplished something, that I have less worry and more space!

Matthew 6:24

"No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.

We need to actively change our hearts to only desire God, because your heart gets what it wants. If you focus on material things, you'll get them, but you won't fully receive all of the blessings God has in store for you. If you focus on bad relationships, you'll get them, focused on gossip, you'll get more.
We've discussed giving away material things, what about giving away money? The devil tells you to wait until you have more, to give more. The devil lies. If you believe him, you will only come to realize, that the more you have, the harder it becomes. Mo Money, Mo Problems. Ha.
Back on track, God is the source to our river. The more we give, the more blessings He will bestow upon us. He is a renewer. Don't give more than you have, but give what you can.
Seek the kingdom of God and He will give you all that you need. Thank God and He will give you peace. Peace will help you to make the best decisions of your life. How easy are peaceful decisions? Have you ever made a peaceful decision or do you always doubt your choices, over analyze them, contemplate them even after you've made them? Did you truly seek God before you made these choices?
Don't make decisions based on short-term happiness, but think about long-term. Don't keep something because you want it, even if you don't need it, or if it's not good for you, because in the long-run, it will end up wasted. Don't hold onto relationships that you know aren't healthy and in line with what God wants for your life. Isn't that being greedy as well, if we hold onto someone that we know we should just give away?
Be a river, not a dam. God is the source of our river and He will always provide us with what we need. God tests, the devil tempts. Make peaceful decisions by letting go, and letting God take control. Seek Him for all of your needs. Seek Him daily, and He will give you your daily breads, and fruits, and blessings, and gifts, and talents, and relationships, and forgiveness and love. The more you give, the more you will get, but don't forget that you have to then give again.

xoxo