TVs or Jesus?

We watched this video in one of my business classes the other night as an illustration for a concept we were discussing. I was pretty repulsed when I first saw it, but its fueled a lot of thoughts since then. If you watch the first 30 seconds, that's enough. I warn you that the following video may disturb you but its not graphic.


My initial reaction was to turn to the dude sitting next to me and say, "Are you kidding me? Is this really going on in our country when there are kids starving in Cambodia?" Which I'd say is a natural reaction for most people who have done a bit of traveling and seen the disparities that exist between North America and the rest of the world (or looked down an alley, been in the slums, walked through the projects of their own city compared to their own neighborhood). But looking past the attempts to reconcile our material wealth in light of the extreme poverty elsewhere and the intrinsic sin of loving material wealth and possessions (Matthew 6:19, 6;24) that plagues our nation, I couldn't stop from examining myself and wondering if I am really any different. Conviction. Sigh. Here it is:

As creatures made to worship, how apt I am to worship the things that God has given me and neglect rightful exuberance for Christ himself. People, sports, food, fun...God gives these gifts to us (Matthew 7:11) and yet what a grievance that we become so consumed and excited by these things and our passion for our Savior falls to the wayside in the process. How often do we throw a huge party centered around food, fun and people, mutter a 30 second prayer before we eat, and forget that the greatest enjoyment of life that exists comes from our LORD Himself??? Don't get me wrong, I love enjoying the things that God has blessed me with, but the root of the issue is this- is my delight and enjoyment of these things in right proportion to their true value? Or am I flying off the handle at a Bluejackets game and then barely keeping my eyes open during an hour of prayer?

What would it look like if my exuberance for Christ was proportional to who He is? If we are thinking rightly about God in all His infinite glory, I wonder how such joy and delight would manifest itself in our daily lives. All other worldly joys would be trounced and trampled underfoot as God's vast character transcends all else. Would we even be able to control ourselves from ridiculously bold worship? Maybe we'd look a bit like David who, "danced before the Lord with all his might" (2 Samuel 6:14) and declared "I will celebrate before the LORD. I will become even more undignified than this and I will be humiliated in my own eyes" (2 Samuel 6:21,22). I know those of you who know me well are hoping that I don't bust out any dance moves, but I think God might have His own appreciation for them...or at least the heart behind them. Lol.

I wonder what these Walmart shoppers would look like if their zeal for TVs was redirected at God. They look like pretty passionate people...I think it would be an awesome sight to see.

May our love and delight for God overflow in our lives in a manner that declares that He is Above All.