painful shift of thinking

"Whenever I am faced with any decision - should I buy this thing, or see this movie, or go to this place, I ask, "Will this bring me closer to God?" "

That's a quote from Matthew Sleeth. It is a hard thing to recognize.

So I've been wrestling with all of this over the weekend. It seems that much of the problems that I'm talking about boil down to materialism. This was a hard realization for me because I am materialistic. Maybe not blatantly so but I subtly find myself yearning after nicer things, more things, bigger things, more comfortable things. This attitude that I find so intertwined with who I am is somewhat a result of our consumerism culture and somewhat a result that I am a sinful human being. I will never find 'enough' in what I already have unless I look to Christ to fill that desire. And beyond that, more stuff typically equals to more harm to our earth.

"Do not wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint. Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle." Proverbs 23:4-5

Our 'things' are not ours to begin with, just like our money. It is not ours. God has provided us with everything that we have, from money, to the water we drink, to the air we breath, the food we eat, etc.

There is a painful shift of focus when you starting looking at your life through a 'green' lens. All of a sudden, the things that I have been striving after and the things that I'm proud of don't seem that boast-worthy anymore. And I look at the changes that we would have to make to live a more green lifestyle and some are easy. We can carpool, compost, recycle batteries, change lightbulbs, recycle (what you can recycle here in Austin: http://www.ecology-action.org/what.html) and raise awareness. Some of the things that we would have to do, I don't really WANT to be a part of. I like my washer and dryer, I like my dishwasher, my garbage disposal, I like my house, my car. . . and to really submit to a green lifestyle, my diet would have to change and my comfort as far as air conditioning and so many other things I am 'accustomed' and feel 'entitled' to. And it seems there is always more to do and that there is never enough that you can do, the problem is so large and that's a hard thing to stomach too.

I guess though, the conclusion that I've come to thus far, is that we can make a difference by starting with the things that are easy and as these small changes are made and my 'green' lens is focuses a little clearer, then maybe my heart will align with the changes that hit a bit closer to home, the changes that make me work a little harder. I am encouraged by this quote, again by Matthew Sleeth:

"We now live in a house the exact size of our old garage. We use less than one-third of the fossil fuels and one-quarter of the electricity we once used. We’ve gone from leaving two barrels of trash by the curb each week to leaving one bag every few weeks. We no longer own a clothes dryer, garbage disposal, dishwasher, or lawn mower. Our “yard” is planted with native wildflowers and a large vegetable garden. Half of our possessions have found new homes. We are a poster family for the downwardly mobile.

What my family and I have gained in exchange is a life richer in meaning than I could have imagined. Because of these changes, we have more time for God. Spiritual concerns have filled the void left by material ones. Owning fewer things has resulted in things no longer owning us. We have put God to the test, and we have found his Word to be true. He has poured blessings and opportunities upon us. When we stopped living a life dedicated to consumerism, our cup began to run over. "

I want that. I believe that changing our lives to be more green will ultimately bring us closer to Christ.

A couple quick statistics and easy changes that you can implement and I'm done for today:

If every household changed its five most used bulbs to compact fluorescent light bulbs, the country could take twenty-one coal-fired power plants off-line tomorrow. This would keep one trillion pounds of poisonous gases and soot out of the air we breathe and would have the same beneficial impact as taking eight million cars off the road. A decrease of soot and greenhouse gases in the air translates into people who will be spared disease and death. Some sixty-four thousand American deaths occur annually as a result of soot in the air.

Each year, billions of used batteries are disposed into solid waste facilities in the United States. This constitutes 88% of the mercury and 54% of the cadmium deposited into our landfills. Since the use of batteries is necessary in our daily operations, the system that is used to manage these batteries should promote source reduction and recycling. These are the essential keys to preventing pollution and reducing your liabilities and costs. Either use rechargeable batteries and recycle those once their lifespan is up or recycle your used batteries: http://www.earth911.org/master.asp?s=ls&serviceid=126 tells you where you can recycle batteries near you. http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/sws/batteries.htm here in Austin. . .

According to The Wall Street Journal, the U.S. goes through 100 billion plastic shopping bags annually. An estimated 12 million barrels of oil is required to make that many plastic bags. Reuse as many times as possible, then recycle these bags (currently, only 1-3% of these bags end up getting recycled), or even better, don't use bags at all! http://www.reusablebags.com/ for more information.

I think we should seek to live simply beautiful lives, simple being the key word. Seeking after the fleeting things of this world will never be fulfilling, but seeking after the things of God will provide the ultimate enjoyment.

"Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment." 1 Timothy 6:17