Ouch.

“You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter.” –James 5:5

Ouch. That’s all I can really say when I read this. Ouch. I can get through the first part of this passage ok, because I guess I don’t consider myself rich—not that being rich in and of itself is a sin. I even do ok with the ‘hoarding wealth’ part, because I know that there is a balance to keep between being generous and saving for the future. I’m ok with that. But this is tough. Luxury and self-indulgence. That strikes right at the heart of America. And too often, it strikes right at the heart of Dustin.

I know what you’re thinking. Most of us really don’t live in luxury, right? I mean, I’m a sucker for the simple in many ways. I hate high-class restaurants. My father in law would call them ‘hoidy-toidy.’ I don’t live to extremes. But the trouble is I’ve been other places. I’ve seen people who have next to nothing sacrificing for the needs of others. I’m confident that what we often call necessity is really luxury. If you don’t agree with me, then that’s fine. But how often do we excessively hoard things for ourselves and call it God’s blessing rather than seeing if God really wants us to bless someone else with it. Which brings us to self-indulgence.

So maybe we aren’t willing to confess to luxury, but self-indulgence abounds in us. Maybe the best way to reveal this is by looking at how we over-entertain ourselves. Think about how much of our time we spend always listening to music, watching TV or movies, playing video games, going to concerts, or just overdoing it when we eat. Self-indulgence is something we take pride in doing here in America. Unfortunately, it desensitizes us both to God and to those who are hurting around us.

When I look at Jesus, I see someone who put his focus on God. While he still took time to relax and refresh himself, he was not someone who lived luxuriously or a self indulgent life. He had an excellent balance that we should also seek. So I would simply encourage you to do this: turn off the TV for a few days and pick up the Word. Take a look around you and see if there are people in need that you haven’t seen before. Take a look at your life too and see where you are living in excess and self-indulgence. Simplify. It will make your life much more useful to God.