I’ve been doing lot’s of thinking lately. Reading Shane Claiborne’s book, The Irresistible Revolution: Living as an Ordinary Radical, has made me rather uncomfortable with my status quo, American-Christian, lifestyle. If you like your life and are comfortable pursuing the American dream, don’t read this book! It will screw you up, give you sleepless nights, and make you wish for less, instead of more!
Each month when I pay bills I am amazed at both how much is coming into our bank account and how much is going out. As I crank my van each morning – a necessity considering the proximity of our home to work – I wonder if the choice to buy it on credit was the proper use of our God-given money. Yes, we both work hard for what we receive, but could we do with less in order to give more to others? And then I run across websites like this one - http://junkycarclub.com/ - and my mind takes the train of thought even further down the tracks. We are just finishing a huge (and expensive) addition/renovation project at home. Was this a wise choice? Could we not have downsized instead of super-sized our living space? To do so would have given us less to worry about caring for and paying for. We would have had more time together due to the smaller space, and less space to spread out and hide from one another. We would have had more money to help others. But then I argue with myself, saying that now we have more space to entertain, to invite friends and neighbors into our home and lives. Why, we could even start a house church in our great room! Maybe so, but will we do that?
I’m sure I will be thinking about these things for quite a while now. I hope you will join me in considering how much is too much for Christians to consume, own, and pursue. I hope we will find the courage to change our lifestyles and practices to better reflect the faith we say we practice!
