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Being back in the states has me reflecting on all the Lord has done in the past two years since I moved to Germany. The Lord taught me so many lessons through moving overseas. One thing I had shared with others often when they asked me what the Lord had been teaching me in that season was how God revealed to me the materialism that existed in my heart. I want to share this lesson with you today.
Materialism? Surely not me. I am the type of girl who buys literally everything she possibly can second-hand. I don't care about name-brand things and rarely own them. I'm very happy with the cheaper options and love a good deal. I would never think that materialism is something I struggle with. Yet, when I moved overseas, I sold almost everything that I owned. In that time, I found myself surprised that I was having an emotional response to selling my favorite things. For some reason, I was sad when I sold my favorite blue couch! How silly I found that to be! It's just a couch that I bought off Facebook Marketplace and picked up from someone's garage. But for some reason, I felt a certain connection to it and I didn't want to let it go. As I continued to sell my things, it got surprisingly harder. And why was that? Nobody was forcing me to move, and it's not like I couldn't get all this same stuff over in Germany. Yet, I realized, somewhere along the line, I began to place a piece of my security and comfort in the things that I owned.
What then is materialism? If it doesn't just manifest in the seeking of name-brand items, luxury, or extravagance, what is it at its core? If you boil it down, materialism is attempting to let earthly items fulfill needs in your heart that only God can fulfill. Why did I feel such trepidation about selling all of my furniture and belongings? It may sound silly, but deep down, it's because I sought comfort and security in them, and my security does not and cannot come from these things. My true security comes from my faith in the sovereignty of the Lord.
Praise God that there is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1), and we are not bad Christians when we struggle with these things. Rather, we can rejoice when these things are revealed to us, because it allows us to realize the ways we are seeking counterfeit hope and security and repent of those sins, exchanging the counterfeits for the real thing through the grace of Christ!
Is there something in your life that you are trying to find fulfillment in that only God can really provide? I want to invite you into the freedom of living in the joy of trusting God wholeheartedly for all that He says He is. As you read God's Word, make note of all it teaches you about God. The Bible is a book about God, and as we read it, we learn who He is and can put our full trust in all that He is. Only then can we identify the counterfeit sources we are seeking for what only God provides.
"Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, 'Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.' So we say with confidence, 'The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?'" (Hebrews 13:5-6)
Why do we need not find our comfort and security in the accumulation of possessions? Because God has promised to never leave or forsake us. There will never be a time where God will not be there for us and we will need something else to fall back on. We need not hold onto the temporary with a tight fist, just in case God doesn't pull through. Rather, we place all our trust in The Helper, and then we can steward what we do have, knowing well it is temporary and actually belongs to God and not us. We fear not what the future may bring and trust that God is our helper who meets all our needs.
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