I want to have nice things. I want to feel marble floors under my feet, caress a wife who exceeds my expectations of a perfect ten, and have available a wide selection of opportunities to keep me occupied. And I don’t understand why I shouldn’t want these.

Buddhism suggests that life is suffering, and to embrace poverty. But to do so creates a battle that I must continuously choose to fight – desire against will. I must then suppress what it is that I want most, because of the belief that those desires really only lead to superficial happiness. While deep down those desires were born because of the ability I have to recognize comfort, and pleasure with happiness.

The Bible suggests that God created man to be like him, and to subdue the earth and all of its inhabitants. Where God comes from God is wealth. Revelation 21:18 describes Gods dwelling place: 18 The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. 19 The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth onyx, the sixth ruby, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth turquoise, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. 21 The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of gold, as pure as transparent glass.

Being made in the image of God leaves me as heir to the desire for this wealth. So why then is there a penalty put on all things I enjoy in life? Why is the purpose of my life to embrace the opposite of what I really want?

If superficial happiness is the crime, then the objects themselves aren’t. And if the objects themselves aren’t then I am the one responsible for the intent that is given to my happiness. This is a game of incomplete information. What is life really trying to say to me? The penalty isn’t in the objects desired the penalty is THE REASONING I have for wanting what I want. And my reasoning comes from the knowledge I have available to put together; knowledge I have collected through experience over the years.

If this knowledge is corrupt in any way it will lead me to an inaccurate view of what this happiness in its purist form really looks like. So my ability to acquire what it is that I was intended to have will never take place because the vision needed to uphold this responsibility isn’t mine. This vision needed to manifest itself and somewhere along the way I interrupted the process. My question now is can I get it back?

I didn't really follow the ending but I am pretty tired. In terms of material wealth I think as a Christian you have to abandon it and seek happiness from a different source.

I have no problems in people desiring materialistic things and think that they are fully within their rights to desire wealth. However, I think in a first world country giving in to these desires is wholly selfish and that if there is a God he would classify it as sinning. I bought a computer game today whereas I should have given the money to charity.

One of the main reasons I turned my back so to speak from Christianity was the blatant selfishness displayed by everyone. I give money to charity but not all of it and I indulge myself needlessly; I say I don't care about starving Africans, AIDS or the homeless because I don't give up my time to help and don't give a significant amount to charity (fwiw I give 10% or my post tax salary to charitable causes - more than anyone I know).

If you want to be Christian about it, suck it up and and put everybody elses needs above yours and forget about ever attaining material wealth even if that is what brings you happiness. You need to sacrifice if you want to make it to the Kingdom of Heaven.

Become an atheist, problem solved...

Erf I think every person experiences what you are experiencing. Its the carnal nature talking to you and you're early in your walk with God and haven't grown out of that stage yet.

Read the Sermon on the Mount.

Christ's way is counter culture to the world's way. Always has been. People are more confused than ever though because of a lot of prosperity doctrine being sprinkled in with the Gospel.

I posted this excerpt from a John Eldredge book a while back in the pray-ers thread:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Weaning Process

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

- Matthew 6:33

God wants us to be happy, but he knows that we cannot be truly happy until we are completely his and until he is our all. And the weaning process is hard.

The sorrows of our lives are in great part his weaning process. We give our hearts over to so many things other than God. We look to so many other things for life. I know I do. Especially the very gifts that he himself gives to us - they become more important to us than he is. That's not the way it is supposed to be. As long as our happiness is tied to the things we can lose, we are vulnerable. This truth is core to the human condition and to understanding what God is doing in our lives. We really believed that God's primary reason for being is to provide us with happiness, give us a good life. It doesn't occur to us that our thinking is backwards. It doesn't even occur to us that God is meant to be our all, and that until he is our all, we are subhuman. The first and greatest command is to love with our whole being. Yet, it is rare to find someone who is completely given over to God. And so normal to be surrounded by people who are trying to make life work. We think of the few who are abandoned to God as being sort of odd. The rest of the world - the ones trying to make life work - seem perfectly normal to us.

Excerpt from one of John Eldredge's daily meditations in his book "Knowing the Heart of God".