What is the Measure of Your Success
Liz really, really wants a particular video game for Christmas. Will he get it?
Before You ListenLet's Get Started
Theme: Wanting more. Christmas
1. Luke 12:15 says that “life does not consist in abundance of possessions.” What is an “abundance of possessions?” How do you know when things have become too important to you?
2. In Mark 10:17-27, we read about a rich young man who heard Jesus’s message and wanted to be saved. He asked Jesus what he needed to do to have eternal life. Jesus told him to keep the commandments. The young man said that he had always kept them ever since he was young. (Of course, he was wrong to say this. Nobody goes that long without sinning. Nobody goes even a single day without thinking or doing something wrong.) But Jesus knew the man couldn’t be saved by being good anyway. He told him to sell everything he owned and follow him. That’s all any of us have to do to be saved—follow Jesus by trusting him. But the young man couldn’t give up his riches. He went away sad because he realized his things were more important to him that being saved. As you listen to this episode, think about how we should feel about our money and belongings.
After you listen
Memory Verse
“Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in abundance of possessions”
Quiz
Reflect
In this episode, Liz learns that happiness doesn’t come from things.
There’s nothing wrong with having a lot of nice things or a lot of money. The problem is when those things become more important to us than living for Jesus Christ.
The apostle Paul told the Philippians that he knew “what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want” (Philippians 4:12). Paul had learned that the secret to being content is to trust the Lord and be joyful about all that God gives us—salvation, peace, a promise of eternity in heaven with him. When we trust Christ, we know that we have those things whether we have a lot of money and things or not. And when we have a lot of things, those things can keep us from trusting God.
Want to dig deeper and learn about the proper attitude toward money and things? Read Ecclesiastes 5:10, Matthew 6:20-21, and Hebrews 13:5.
Challenge
Take a look at all your toys and other belongings. Pick something nice and donate it to your church to give to someone who doesn’t have nice things. (Check with your parents first to make sure it’s OK.) Maybe you have a jacket or coat that you like but it’s a little too small for you now. Maybe you have a toy that you know would be special to a kid who has none. Don’t pick something junky that you don’t want. Pick one thing that will hurt a little to get rid of. You’ll find that you’ll get joy from making the choice not to be greedy.
