materialism

How much is enough?

/ E Bishop Wooten / Leave a comment

“You can’t have everything. Where would you put it?”-Steven Wright

The question of the day is how much do you need to make you happy?

The answer is always just a little bit more.

Who came up with the phrase “he who dies with the most toys wins?” All you win is a trip to an early grave. And you can’t take a U-haul with you. Actually I have seen this done but in a photo but I don’t think it will get past the check-in in the spiritual world.

No one ever came to the end of their lives wishing they’d have spent more time at the office.

Most people are working for status and power. The money just follows it. Once you find true wealth, it is quite possible for these to lose their appeal. That is why so many “poor” working class people may have more even though they have less on paper. After all it’s hard to see someone in a “ghetto” as being poor if they own their older house and a few cars.

If we judged middle class by net worth rather than income, the blue collar working class may have more than white collar middle class does, because the latter has mostly debt.

Unfortunately the world doesn’t work that way. Those who work hard and live by labor and work hard will always be in the bottom of the social hierarchy no matter how much they make. The middle class lives by education and mostly mental jobs. The upper class makes money with money and literally owns society

The Talmud says one is rich when he is content with what he has. You can have more if you are content and you won’t get attached to it and most likely be more generous.

“They own you.”-George Carlin.

How to break out of prison

/ E Bishop Wooten / Leave a comment

Romans 2:28-29. . .”“Who are Jews but those who have received the circumcision of the heart?”

I have to confess that in recent years I have found more spiritual fulfillment from sites like Chabad.  I experienced more spiritual growth since I became interested in Judaism a few years ago. This is not surprising since it is the parent to Christianity. It goes without saying that the most spiritual Christians just refer to themselves as Judeo-Christians.

That being said, I tried attending a few Messianic congregations only to find that there was too much “Christianity” in it. You will better understand this when you come to understand the difference between following the Christ and following the religion built around the Messiah. 

In more recent years I discovered that I didn’t have to attend a Messianic church. I could just study Judaism on my own. I can also find the most spiritual congregations who are in touch with their Jewish roots. Even Paul said we are all spiritual Jews.

In one of the posts on Chabad that I read this week, it was saying that the best way to escape a prison cell was to make yourself small.  This is a great analogy for life which can seem like a prison.

Actually the material world is a prison. Our divine selves are actually free spirits. This is why we often feel trapped by the burdens placed on us by society.  Society will make us feel like we have some kind of moral obligation to produce and earn a higher income (making us economic slaves). It is even worse when the church does it because it perverts the message of Christ.

The humble, simple life is a high calling in scripture. The more you know God, the more you know yourselves. The more you realize where true wealth lies.  Rich and poor are relative terms.

The material world is hell. This is the only hell that exists is the ones humans create by making life complicated and stressful.

Living intentionally keeps you more focused on the Divine.

There is nothing wrong in and of itself with being materially ambitious. Even James, the half-brother of Jesus, talked about remaining humble in your high position. You can be as wealthy as you are driven to in the material world. Just don’t get too attached to it because this is when it borders on idolatry.

Pursue your dreams. Build an empire. Create all the wealth you want. Just remember to hold it with an open hand and to give back to humanity everything you have been blessed with. Actually if you don’t give back, the government will get ahold of it through taxes. Another reason why one is better off being poor, because if you really believe in divine providence then poverty doesn’t really exist and is completely man made.