Kitchen Table...

At least the placemats are stylish : )

Buying a new house this summer pretty much broke our bank. We really love our new home, but, we still don’t have it fully furnished…and it won't be for a while. Having to eat at a card table, sitting in camping chairs and walking through empty rooms has “motivated” me to spend a lot of time thinking about material things. My wish list for the house seems endless, and every month that we, I mean my husband-the budget wizard, finds a bit of extra money in the budget for house things, I become this one-track-mind- robot that can only concentrate on surfing the internet for deals on furniture. Machinating schemes to stretch the set amount of money that I have becomes an obsession. Prioritizing and re-prioritizing becomes an art.

If I could only be thus focused on “things” that really matter…boy, would I be accomplishing great things for His Kingdom… The time I spend thinking about the things I want to acquire could be so much better invested concentrating on things that have eternal repercussions rather than on selecting the right kitchen table for our new house. And all for what? So I can be stressed out about the boys nicking and nixing my brand new acquisition? It is not like having a nice kitchen table is going to make us eat healthier or even have more meals together…

We have eaten more meals truly together, gathered around our current card table and sitting on mix-matched camping chairs that we ever did at our “real” kitchen table at our old house… I even think the boys are growing rather attached to it since when I mentioned we might finally be getting a new set, Grant asked alarmed, “what are you going to do with this one?” The look in his eyes showed me he was worried I would pitch the current ensemble.

The intensity of my misplaced focus reached a new high the other night when I couldn’t go to sleep because I couldn’t stop thinking about kitchen tables…then…I actually got up, turned the computer on and began “window” shopping again at 2am!

Needless to say I feel convicted now. The Lord has showed me that my attachment to this world and to its material things is great, indeed…and I am ashamed. He has reminded me that the only truly important thing for His children to do is to…

…seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Matthew 6: 33

My prayer at this moment is that I become a good steward of His blessings, and that my focus doesn’t get corrupted by wasteful desires that do nothing but entangle my soul and enslave it. He wants me to be free. And that freedom has been given to me not for me to squander it in foolish pursuits, but to invest it in seeking His heart. So, regardless of whether we get a nice kitchen table or not, I will praise Him for His patience, mercy and love. He will take care of us even if we need to eat many more meals around a folding table sitting in camping chairs.

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said,

“Never will I leave you;

never will I forsake you.”  

Hebrews 13: 5

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