Enough - Pt 1

    We don't like it when other people tell us how to spend our money. We don't like it when we get a bill in the mail. We don't like thinking about money, because often it can make us feel anxious or like we don't have enough.

   But the truth is we have to talk about money because it is part of our daily lives. We have to talk about money and how we spend it because it can be a reflection of the state of our hearts. And we have to talk about money, because pretending that the topic doesn't exist or doesn't effect us personally is a slippery slope.

   At least three of the seven deadly sins can pertain to money if we don't keep our heart in check.
- Gluttony is often described as over indulgence. Even, and perhaps especially, when we don't think we have enough money we can find ourselves over-indulging in material things. We use credit cards and loans in order to have the next and biggest and best thing without stopping to think about if we really need it.
- Greed is hoarding what we have instead of sharing it with the world. When we think we don't have enough we don't readily share. Or when we stop examining our own hearts and instead start to judge others in order to decide if they are deserving of us sharing what we have.
- Envy is wanting what someone else has. And we live in a world where commercials seem to exist for that purpose - putting forth the message that if we want to be anyone in this world, we need this specific thing. Or leading us to think that everyone else has this thing that they are trying to sell, leading us to want something and eventually tricking us into thinking we need it - that our lives will not be the same without this particular material good.

   Money itself is completely neutral. We can use it whatever way our heart leads us to. What is the state of your heart as seen through your spending habits?