Café - Hot Topic

"Then Jesus called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases. And he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal. He said to them, 'Take nothing for your journey, no staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money — not even an extra tunic.” (Luke 9:1–3)

I sat down at the computer to write this article but got distracted shopping online. I need a new dress to wear to a wedding later this summer.

I’m writing on faith and consumption because as a pastor and a Christian, I care about how greed and consumerism affect our spiritual health. I understand that “life abundant” and “stuff abundant” are not the same thing. I also take seriously the charge to love God’s creation, and our current rate of consumption is choking the earth.

But the embarrassing truth is that I’m also writing this article on faith and consumption because the extra money will help me afford that new dress.

I want to follow Jesus, and I believe that Jesus had good reasons for sending his disciples out into the world with only one tunic. By contrast, I have seven dresses hanging in my closet and still don’t have a thing to wear.

And that’s a problem.

Maybe your problem isn’t clothes but gadgets, vacations, furniture, golf clubs, or that irresistible piece of chocolate cake. We all know it’s not good for us, but most of us have some consumptive habit we just can’t break.

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Faith Reflections by Sarah Scherschligt

Visit the study page for ideas for discussion and further reflection.

When Moses began leading the people of Israel through the wilderness, they grumbled. They’d been delivered from slavery in Egypt, but now, in the vast and barren wilderness, there was no food. They longed for the days of captivity — at least then they had food to eat. They wanted to die.

In response to their hunger and distress, God provided. “I am going to rain bread from heaven for you, and each day the people shall go out and gather enough for that day” (Exodus 16:4). God sent bread in the morning and quail in the evening. There would be enough to eat.

But there were limits to how much they could eat. There would be food each day, but the people could only gather what they needed that day.

The Israelites were anxious for themselves and their children and worried about whether God would really deliver day after day. So they tried to store manna but soon learned that that didn’t work — the manna spoiled and the bugs infested it, and they couldn’t eat it. They had to trust God. They went to bed each night with no food in hand and had to live in faith that God would rain down manna again in the morning. They lived that way for 40 years.