As we continue on the topic of Cash, Cars & Cribs, lets take a look at what this idea looks like. This has been the very reason why many marriages haven’t worked, the reason why many people chase success instead of purpose and sadly enough, the reason why most churches fall. All humans from birth have a sense of pride in an area that they may not need to. In some of us, that pride is increased by one or all three of the Cash, Cars or Cribs. Many people have allowed their “status” to be the deciding factor in the way they live life. Things acquired (in itself) through life have led them to the conclusion of their purpose. Sometimes all a person needs is a reason and they can give you an explanation for everything they do, no matter if it’s wrong or right. Then for that reason alone, they can easily pass judgement comparing your life to theirs. In Romans 2:1 (ESV) it says, “Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things.” Your negative thoughts and words of others, hurt you more than they hurt them.

For some reason, people think that they can have all the gifts and promises from God, but not have an actual relationship with Him. That’s similar to the way the world is displayed today. You have a person who is used to the “things” but doesn’t really have an attachment to the “things” provider. We’ve become conditioned to receiving and never having to put forth any real effort and when the time comes where we have to, its “uncomfortable”. Many times God wants us uncomfortable so He, and He only, can comfort us. If we have lived our lives in a comfort zone, it makes things that we haven’t encountered very difficult to understand or even get through for that matter. People have somehow diminished God down to a “sugar daddy”. We come to church, bat our eyes, lift our arms, sing praise songs we can’t relate to and then EXPECT something from God. We have ungodly friends, we have ungodly things, we go ungodly places, we do ungodly things, but we EXPECT reward for absolutely no effort applied. Psalm 1:1-6 (ESV) tells us, “Blessed is the man who walks NOT in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous; for the Lord knows the way of the righteous , but the way of the wicked will perish.” If this tells us what the blessed person looks like and also what the wicked person looks like, we should be able to conclude what we deserve on our own.

Many times we don’t understand how one area of our lives can effect the other. Take for example a car, without a regular oil change you begin to have other problems with the car. It wasn’t that you were unaware that this problem existed, you just “allowed it more time”. Before you know it something that was inexpensive is now very expensive. Much like ourselves, we allow something small to become HUGE in our lives. Don’t allow the detected or undetected to go on without it being “repaired or replaced”. James 4:17 (ESV) says, “So whoever know the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.” There is no greater love than the love Christ provides for His people. I challenge you today, to ask God to reveal to you “areas” where you need to change and improve but allow Him the lead in the restoring process. For our help is in the Lord!

Be Blessed!