Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. 1 John 2:15-17
It's amazing what we miss out on when we're not paying attention. In our house, the gadgets distract us all too often from what is going on right in front of us. For others, it's obsession with staying fit, staying busy, or adding to their collection of things to have a weekend with. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that there is anything wrong with a healthy hobby, but even healthy hobbies can become an unhealthy obsession when they remove us from our purpose. And what would that purpose be? Matthew 22 has a straightforward answer for us:
“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And he said to him,“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” (36-40)
Our jobs, hobbies, or anything else, should they become our obsessions, take us away from fulfilling the greatest commandment, first within our own homes, and then in the world at large. Not lightly does Paul tell the Colossians "Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ." (3:23-24) We forget who gives the gifts, and who the blessings come from, and who they are for. If we seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, everything we need will be provided. But if we seek after what is provided, we'll never see the Kingdom of God. God will not share us with anyone or anything else. Remember this! It is VITAL. And, let us not be counted as those Paul describes in Romans 1:
"Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen." (1:24-25)
