Aug 7 Fri
Is the hunt for material things the only motivation in my life?
Our life here on Earth is like a trip we're taking towards love: loving God and loving everyone else. But, because of the first sin, we humans got a bit messed up. We often love ourselves too much and look for happiness in stuff here on Earth, even when it goes against what God wants for us.
Now, when we reasonably are into material things and keep them in check, that's actually good. We use it to meet our basic human needs.
But sometimes, temptations can make us want things that aren't good for us. So, we have to be careful about those urges that could pull us away from God. This is super important these days, when a lot of people think happiness is all about having and enjoying earthly stuff. It's like we have a battle going on inside us: a fight against our own twisted desires.
To be vigilant, we must be constantly battling against temptations or anything that makes our faith weaker, our hope fizzle out, or our love get messed up. Everyone feels a lot of pressure, pushed by the devil.
Don't forget that sin, which is basically turning away from God and only focusing on worldly things, starts to sneak into our souls through those evil desires and that urge to enjoy earthly pleasures, no matter what, feeding our earthly ambitions until we forget about God and why we were even created.
Nowadays, there is a universal tendency to center everything on man. We're living in a world that's all about material things. It confuses freedom with permissiveness, while commercializing human passions. It's pretty sad to see so many people letting themselves be told what to do by a few folks who push their own ideas, myths, and even a whole non-religious way of doing things.
We need to combat this tendency with the resources of Christian doctrine, in a constant and worldwide work of Christian formation.
"Remember, this inner struggle isn't just about us disciplining ourselves. It's what naturally follows from the truths God has shown us about Himself, about being human, and about our purpose in the world. Without that inner fight, without sharing in what Jesus went through, no one can really follow Him. Maybe that's why we're seeing this messed-up rush. A lot of people seem to think they can live a totally worldly life and still follow Christ, without the Cross and without suffering."
We live in a society that's all about having fun, and materialism is everywhere. The most important principles, which guided how individuals and society behaved, are being hollowed out by fake ideas about freedom, how sacred life is, that marriage is forever, what human sexuality really means, and how we should view the material advancements that progress brings. Many people are now tempted to just indulge themselves and buy a lot of stuff, and who we are is often defined by what we own."
If we are not careful, we too could succumb to this terrible disease, which is incompatible with true Christian living.