On a road trip with the girls this week (fave thing to do in the summer months) conversation turned to home styling, as one of my friends is moving into a new flat. Inevitably, the Pinterest boards came out (if you haven’t discovered Pinterest yet, where have you been?!) and it wasn’t long before we’d left temporary rental décor solutions way behind and moved on to discussing our dream houses. Yes I know, we are such old women, but I cannot even tell you how much delight it gave us to scroll through all these pictures full of beautiful things. By the time we’d exhausted this activity one thing had become clear to me: either I would need to win the lottery, or be adopted by some very wealthy person to actually have a chance of realising my dream house! Aside from the fact that I’m pretty sure there aren’t too many people out there considering adopting a 21-year-old woman, all this did get me thinking.
Am I being too materialistic?
I’ve never been the kind of girl to strive after excessive amounts of money, but I must admit to being somewhat of a magpie when it comes to pretty things. That said I’ve never valued anything material over what are proven to be true riches – love, joy, peace… (any of these ring a bell? The fruits of the Spirit can be found in Galatians 5:22-23). The word ‘materialism’ at a glance doesn’t seem to apply to me. It makes me think of business men working in The Shard, who never see their families because making money is more important to them. But for some reason, after looking through endless pictures of other people’s beautiful possessions, I had been left withan undeniable sense of lack. Swap the word ‘materialism’ for another, and I find it hits much closer to home.
Whether it’s looks, clothes, houses, friends, money, whatever, comparison is the reason so many will chase material things only to be left empty. As members of the Facebook generation, comparing our lives to others’ can so easily become a daily occurrence, and nothing makes you feel more inadequate than a quick scroll through a profile belonging to someone who seems to have life going so much better than you! What does the Bible say about this?
“Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else,” Galatians 6:4 (NIV)
The thing is, it’s hopeless trying to be happy while being envious at the same time, and that’s all comparison is! The next verse in this chapter says this:
“for each one should carry their own load.” Galatians 6:5 (NIV)
Life isn’t meant to be a competition. Social media puts materialism into a much more relevant context for me, but the principles are still the same. God has given us our own path tailor-made; we’ll never find fulfilment walking someone else’s! Is this something you’ve come across too? I’m totally preaching to myself here!
Written by Yemisi-Joy
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