Greed: The Adult-Sized Monster

Remember the monsters of childhood, those dark figures with long, spindly fingers, or the giant, hairy beasts that popped out from behind a closet door or a tree in your backyard? The illusive boogey man has terrified children around the world since the 1500s. I remember stories about this dark, foreboding figure when I was four years old—scary stuff when you tried to fall asleep in a quiet room with the shadows of trees playing along the walls.

My own children grew up across the road from an abandoned farmhouse that  had once hopped with activity as a working dairy farm in the 1900s.  Most of its windows had shattered long before we arrived, leaving gaping holes that looked like eyes in the dark. The perfect setup for a child’s imagination, it was filled with bats that flew in and out when the sun began to set each night.  If there were a house anywhere that would appeal to the boogeyman, it was that one– the perfect setup for a child’s imagination to run wild!

We often laugh at the monsters of our childhood. They were only figments of our little imaginations. Sadly, adult-sized  monsters can replace them if we are not on our guard. Having an intense and selfish desire for something is one monster we may face—the monster of greed. When it raises its ugly head, it seeks to consume more and more, leaving strife in its shadow. It is the opposite of trusting in God for what we desire:

Greed causes fighting; trusting God leads to prosperity. Proverbs 28:25

Like the pretend monsters of childhood that returned night after night in our imaginations, the desire for more and more is an illusion that can never be satisfied. How can we avoid its clutches?  Trusting God with our wants and desires will send the monster of greed running!