Wealth consists not in having great possessions,
but in having few wants.
Esther de Waal, Seeking God: The Way of St. Benedict
___________________
My husband and I had a discussion last Wednesday about what we would do if we were ever to win the lottery. We were on our way home from a nice dinner out and saw a billboard for the Powerball which got our imaginations rolling. The chances of us winning the lottery are quite slim, especially considering we don’t even play it, but we thought it would be fun to daydream about it.
Of course we decided we would get rid of our student loans first, and probably the loans of our friends and family, too. Then we would design and build our dream home from scratch, and probably do the same for our parents. We’d put a great deal of money into savings, we’d give a great deal to charity, and we’d buy lots of video games.
But the longer we talked about our impossible plans for our impossible lottery winnings, the more I realized that I was bordering on want. I realized that day in the car as we were discussing that there is a fine line between daydreaming and want.
I’ve always had an issue with envy—it’s something I struggle with. I pray very frequently that God would help me have a sense of contentment with what I have, and that He would also show me daily the blessings that are around me that I so frequently miss.
As soon as I began to feel negative emotions about not having this lottery money, I let the discussion trail off. It had become unconstructive—no—deconstructive. It’s okay to daydream, but it isn’t okay to dwell on things you don’t have.
What do you do to stay content with the blessings in your life? How do you stay on the daydreaming side of the line?
This entry was posted on 10:00 AM
and is filed under
inspire me monday
,
personal
,
quotes
.
You can follow any responses to this entry through
the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response,
or trackback from your own site.
2 comments:
Everyone looks at the sign that says "120 million dollars" and thinks what they could do with that. The initial thoughts are the same: pay off debts, buy houses, and buy the luxeries. It afterwards that you start thinking about that kind of impact money can have on you.
I am fortunate to not have any debt, so my big bang would be to quit my job. For me that is (some of) the most stress I have ever had in my life and doing this would free me from it.
After that, I would want nothing more than to spend it on my friends and family. My Grandmother would never worry about getting a ride somewhere (legally blind means no driving for her). My dad would get that Corvette he dreams about. My mom would have a beach house, one of her dreams. My siblings would have the nice things they wanted and as for my friends, We would be trotting the globe. I hear New Zealand is nice this time of year.
That is what money is for me. I love my video games, golfing, beer, concerts and cruises, but they would not be nearly as fun if I didn't have people to enjoy them with. I like being a provider, a nickname I had at one point, cause I love to see people happy.
Always be happy with what you have, but don't forget to dream. If you don't dream big, then what's the use in dreaming
@Nick Rock, you are a provider. Even if you can't spend money on somebody, it shows that you want to take care of them. :) And I knew I wasn't the only one dreaming about lottery money, but it's good to hear someone say it. ;)
Thank you for commenting. You are the first, you know.
Post a Comment