Nothing Else

          Blaring radio advertisements, women in skimpy clothes posing beside shiny new cars, billboards that block out half the sky, TV commercials cramming their empty words down your throat… It wasn’t always like this. There was a time when everything in the world was good, but that was before the fallout of man. Now we live in a world that screams, I WANT, I NEED, I, MYSELF, ME, ME, ME. The ads that we see everywhere we go all promote one thing: the self. They tell you that what you have is never good enough, and that to be happy you need the latest, the nicest, the most. This is what happens when you combine man and money, because we are all selfish creatures inside. Don’t you for one second deny it; you know it’s the truth. It says in Jeremiah 6:13, “From the least to the greatest, all are greedy for gain; prophets and priests alike, all practice deceit.” All are greedy for gain. All practice deceit. Why? Because we are sinners who live in a sinners’ world.

            If I knew about the lies and influence of the media earlier on in my life, I would have taken the truth harder and felt guiltier, because I used to be that kind of person. I used to confuse my wants with my needs and sigh about not having enough allowance or a new phone. I would have said that my wants and needs were almost the same; if not, the same. That was I before I fully put my security in Him and said, “You know what, Jesus? This time, I am really giving You my all, and I am going to throw myself into seeking You.” It was then I discovered the secret that Paul mentioned in Philippians 4:12. My contentment comes from my hope being anchored in Him and Him being in me. My wants and needs? Jesus. He is all I want and He is all I need.

            We can see people’s thoughts, their values, and morals in the decisions they make, and we see those decisions and their effects in economics. Consumerism is a big part of economics, because that is where all the decision making lies. Do I buy this or not? Do I buy the whole pack, or just one piece? Do I buy this brand or that brand? It reveals what we truly value in this life, and therefore shows what kind of lives we lead: either one that is contented or one that is always hungering for more and is never satisfied. I have learned that I want to lead the contented life. I am still being refined and have got a long way to go before I reach the finish line, but the cry of my heart will remain the same:  that the things of this world will never sway me, and that my eyes will always be fixed on Jesus. And nothing else.