"Greed is good!"-Gordon Gecko

" Greed is good!" I'm sure that most people have heard that from the 80s movie Wall Street. Gordon Gecko utters those words and you believe him. We see that good old fashion greed is still at work in todays society, although it s changed slightly since the 80's aka Decade of Decadence. I told you I had been to a mens conference recently and that Ego, Greed and Lust are the main issues men face today. We covered ego, now onto greed.
 We are greedy little people. Each and every one of us. Greedy about different things, sure. Some are greedy with their money. Some are greedy with their time. Some are greedy with their talents. Why? Now I'm no therapist but I think greed stems from insecurities. We as a society have them. We as Christians have a boatload. As a non believer you have a boatload of them. I don't make enough money. I'm not a good enough speaker. If people at church knew my past they might stone me. If people knew what I struggle with they would stay away from me. I'm too fat. I'm too short. I cant sing. My house is old. My car is so old Dave Ramsey would be proud. My clothes are so outta date I cant go to church wearing them. I've been married and divorced several times because all these women are crazy, I'm sure its not me. How about this one. A man that is so insecure that they have to know every move their wife or girlfriend makes? Sure those insecurities are easy to spot. What about those everyday insecurities?  Or how about "Little Man Syndrome"?  A term used for a short guy who has insecurities about his height. See they are all around us. They lead us to be greedy. We have to camouflage our insecurities with "things." Those things start to define us. We are what we have. Without those things who are we?
Greed is pushed on us in America in form of the American Dream. Bigger, Better, Faster. We are sold those bill of goods hook, line and sinker. Do good, make money, buy a bigger house, buy a bigger car, move outta that neighborhood and into a better one. buy better clothes, faster phones and technology(guilty). All that leads to is debt and greed. The Dream in reality puts us in debt and makes us "servants to the lender." That's a wise  Proverb but as a country and society we have left that principal far behind. As a country we are further in debt than we have ever been. As an American household the average credit card debt is $15,270, mortgage debt is at $149,925 and student loan averages are at $32,258 per household. Those numbers are staggering but not uncommon. There is the problem. We have become desensitized to debt and all that it encompasses. Unable to make financial decisions based on what s best for their household. We just spend and spend. Its greed and the ability to have those needs and insecurities quenched instantly that have us in the shape we are in now.
We see the prosperity gospel today is so popular because it feeds on our greed and insecurities. 1st Timothy 6:3-10 teaches us about money and what it does to us. It "drowns men in destruction and perdition." Its very powerful warning. Greed and debt. Insecurities. No wonder the top thing married couples fight about is money, and we wonder why divorce rates are so high among Christians. The 90's poet Biggie Smalls said "more money, more problems." Its so true. Stewardship with what God has given us is the most important. Its no secret that my church is struggling finically. Why? Previous bad financial choices. The church chose to be in debt. We still are and will be for a time to come. People say "Why are you struggling so bad finically?" My answer is , God is teaching us about patience and stewardship. No bones about it. We must learn that greed is not the answer. Contentment is. Timothy tells us the answer to greed and insecurities is contentment. Contentment is defined as, "a state of happiness and satisfaction" Well, Timothy tells us contentment is the answer. God provides and we have to learn to be happy with what we have. To practice stewardship with what we are blessed with. Timothy tells us that we are not taking anything with us when wwe leave this world. So why focus on it so importantly while we are here?