A thought by John Ortberg from his
book, The Me I Want to Be (p. 83).
Zondervan. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to
buy the book.)
Ok, but is this a good thing?
John goes on, “If we could purge away
all our sin, we would still desire material things because God created that
stuff. All stuff, ultimately, is part of God’s creation, and therefore it is
all good. And therefore, it is desirable.
“Do you like money? In Acts 16 we read
about Lydia, a businesswoman dealing in textiles, who was the first convert to
Christianity in Europe. She had an eye for design and a flair for making money.
Imagine the passion and drive it would take for a woman to succeed in business
in the ancient world. She was good enough at it that she owned her own home,
and it was large enough that it became part of her ministry. Lydia’s house
became the first meeting place of the first church in the history of Europe. Of
all the churches built over all the centuries — Notre Dame, Westminster Abbey,
and the Sistine Chapel — the very first one in Europe was the home of this
Philippian businesswoman named Lydia.”
John continues, “Maybe you have a
flair for money. You enjoy it. You don’t admit it to anyone at church, but you
do. You love being surrounded by beauty, design, and color. That in itself is
not a bad thing. God created beauty. God loves beauty.
“If these desires choke your
generosity, cause you to live in debt, or create chronic dissatisfaction, then
it is time to say no. But it is a good thing to put beauty in your environment
that speaks to your soul. When you see that beauty, embrace that God-given joy
and thank him that he is such a good God.
“In that moment, you can experience
the flow of the Spirit in your life.
“As the Spirit flows in you, maybe God
will give you creative, new ideas about how to share what you have, just as he
did with Lydia.”
John says, “Is it a bad thing to like
fast cars? That is a material desire. Maybe God placed a desire for fast cars
within you so you could be a policeman so that you could drive really fast and
it would be legal. (My nephew is training with the California Highway Patrol,
and it sounds like fun.) Or maybe you drive fast so policemen can have
something to do.
He then says, “Now, if your desire for
cars blocks good stewardship or puts you in debt, it is time to say no. If not,
is it possible that enjoying a car might be something you could do with God?
And when you are driving, you might say, ‘God, I invite you to be with me in
this moment.’
“The Spirit could be flowing with you
right there — j-u-s-t under the speed limit.”
Do you see that material desires can be
a good thing?
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