Thoughts that have come from various quotes taken from the book, "Victor - Breaking Free From a Victim Based Society" by John H. Hovis. Click here to link directly to the audio file.
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"Worldly prosperity is about trying to bolster your identity with things. We want to be more than we feel we are so we amass as much as we can in the hopes that this proves we are more. My soul is tired just thinking about how that last sentence has been lived over and over again in my life."
As quoted from the book "Victor - Breaking Free From a Victim-Based Society" by John H. Hovis Page 118.
Ever seen that bumper sticker that says, "Those with the most toys wins!"? That sentiment is the epitome of what my quote from today's presentation is trying to combat. Who we are, how we really feel about ourselves and how much we have will never be all that we need to feel the kind of peace I believe the victor is suppose to have in his or her life.
I have known people with insane amounts of money. These people were some of the most miserable, confused and identity lacking folks I have ever seen. I have seen powerful and absurdly rich people screw up their entire life doing stupid things for reasons, I now see, as them just trying to feel some proof of life in the middle of their amazing circumstances. I have heard of wildly successful people committing suicide because they were so lost when it came to who they were. If money, position and possessions were all we needed to make this life be all it is suppose to be, I believe cases like what I have described here wouldn't be as prevalent as I know them to be.
Sure, there are rich and powerful people who are happy by all outward appearances. It isn't the money or position that I believe is a threat to their well being. It is relying on that money and/or position that opens the door to victim thinking. It is when, what we rely on for what we need begins to change that circumstances can really usher in victim thinking principals.
Our reading today puts an exclamation point on what I'm trying to say about how the results of what we do is so hopeless in making what really matters happen in our lives. Let's take a look at today's passage now.
Look, here is someone who did not depend on God for safety,
but trusted instead in great wealth
and looked for security in being wicked.
But I am like an olive tree growing in the house of God;
I trust in his constant love forever and ever.
I will always thank you, God, for what you have done;
in the presence of your people
I will proclaim that you are good. Psalm 52:7-9 (GNT)
It isn't the person's wealth that made the difference. It wasn't what they did that made them secure. No, it is the fact that the author of this Psalm realized his worth being planted right were he was that made all the difference when it came to seeing God's love in his life. God's pleasure for this man didn't happen because he was good at what he did for a living. No, God was pleased because this man chose to thrive - to grow exactly where God planted him. That's what a victor does when it comes to living fully in the power God has for our lives.
God doesn't have a thing against us being wealthy or powerful or in a place of position. In fact, God has plans for some of us to have all these and more. What God hates is, what our reliance on these worldly benefits does to our confidence as the victor He has made us to be. It is when we tie who we are to anything in this world that the ravages of victim thinking threaten to take over in our life. God hates those ravages because they cause us pain and He can't stand to see His children suffer.
Look, go after as many toys as you want. There's nothing wrong with having nice things at all. Just don't buy into the notion that the more you have the better you will feel about who you are. Applying that kind of logic is like thinking that painting your house will help end the pains in your belly when you are hungry. The two just don't match up at all. Doing more and more to try and quell the feelings regarding identity that make our Victim-Based Society possible, is just as absurd as painting a house and thinking that, that action will satisfy your physical hunger.
How hungry are you today? What are you going to do to satisfy that hunger? Choose your actions carefully. Make sure what you are working for will actually give you the result you want. Amassing more and more will do little to make your identity issues go away. Let what God says about you be all the sanctification you need to live the fullness of your victor status today.
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