Money and Sobriety

Not all drunkenness comes from overindulgence in substances (drugs, alcohol). Everyone has heard the term “drunk with power”, but there are many other ways to lose our sobriety as well.

The dictionary defines sober this way:

“marked by sedate or gravely or earnestly thoughtful character or demeanor: unhurried, calm: marked by temperance, moderation, or seriousness: subdued in tone or color: showing no excessive or extreme qualities of fancy, emotion, or prejudice”

In our culture one of the most insidious addictions is the craving for money and the pursuit of “more”. The resulting fallout is the root of a lot of pain and the break-up of marriages, businesses and friendships.

A drunk does not make good decisions. Actions are not well thought out. They do not adequately consider others’ feelings or see the “big picture”, but rather live for the moment.  

I am not just talking about the obvious results of spending addictions (stuff-lust), but also the loss of relationship that comes when money and the pursuit of it becomes an all-consuming idol.

Why do I call it an idol? It is because we are constantly making sacrifices to it. I sacrifice time with my family and friends. I sacrifice my need for sleep. I sacrifice recreation time. I may sacrifice my integrity through compromise. And I sacrifice my time spent with God.

I think it is also possible to sacrifice our Christian worldview.

Matthew 16:26 (NLT) And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul?

I wonder how many well-intentioned parents have spent huge amounts of money to send their children to secular universities only to have them return as atheists and skeptics. The intended purpose was to prepare their sons and daughters to succeed in life financially (to have more). And so education also becomes an idol with its attendant sacrifices.

Sociologists have claimed that we have created a generation of narcissists, drunk with entitlement, many of whom cannot do much of anything useful, but believe they deserve everything. When everything does not come, they may become angry or depressed.

How can we correct this?

It is not easy. We must very thoughtfully consider whether our behavior is consistent with our values. We must become restrained in our pursuit of more. We must consider what we are modeling for our children. And yes, we must have a budget and make our wants obedient to it.   

And more importantly we must consider whether our values are consistent with God’s values and a Christian life.

Addicted To What?!

The other day I was waiting at a stoplight. The light turned green but the car in front of me didn’t move, so I gave a tap on the horn. The car began moving very slowly and I managed to pass on the left. I looked over and the driver was texting! Later that day I was in a small parking lot and the same type of thing happened. A car was blocking our lane and our ability to move. The woman in the car – texting! I won’t even mention the amount of times I have almost been run into on foot while someone was texting and not looking where they were going.

New statistics show that the risk of a car accident is equal for driving drunk or texting while driving. Only there is no Breathalyzer test to be administered or an open container to be found.

How about the relational fallout? How many times have you seen people eating a meal, while at least one person is texting, not engaged in the live conversation? We are not fully living in the present circumstances when our mind is engaged elsewhere.

And even the text communication is at risk as well. Only 7% of a complete communication is the actual words we use. The other 93% is composed of our tone and our body language – the greater percentage being our body language. That is why we try to only counsel people via Skype video (as an alternative to in-office), rather than telephone. The risk of a miscommunication is greater in voice communication only, and greatest in a text only message.

I believe that for some people, dependence on their cell phone has reached the level of a full-blown addiction. Try taking away someone’s cell phone and you may experience the same kind of rage that you would encounter from separating an alcoholic from his/her bottle. This is particularly evident with adolescents.

Try taking this little quiz. If you can answer yes to all these questions, you are probably OK.

1. I do not text while driving.
2. I can put my cell phone on silent while spending face-time with people.
3. I turn off my cell phone during church
4. I don’t text while engaged in a live conversation with others.
5. I can wait until later to read texts received while spending time with friends and family.

I hope you did well!