The American Dream Attitudes

Blessed are the rich in material things

For theirs is the kingdom of this world

Blessed are those who live in suburbia

For they will be comfortable

Blessed are the strong and athletic

For they are great and better

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for good food and drink

For they and shall have unlimited choices for their bodily appetites

Blessed are those who get even

For revenge is sweet and they will remain on top

Blessed are the beautiful and successful by this world’s standards

For they are pleasing to look at and to be envied

Blessed are the ones who never back down

For they answer to no one but themselves

Blessed are the comfortable who are pampered

For God loves them more 

And they are the goal of the American Dream

Blessed are you if you want everything, striving to reach

the full potential of having it all.  Cars, Jewelry, Vacations,

Power, Designer Clothing, Yachts, Jets, Prestige, Popularity

Great Art, Wine, Electronics, Education, Mansions, Land,

being Thin, Young and Beautiful.

Think about this for a minute.  None of those things is necessarily wrong except if you take God out of it.  If God is taken out of the picture the American Dream Attitudes is what you end up with while serving yourself.

When you meet someone for the first time often the question is, “What do you do?” The answers are varied from doctor, to lawyer, to mill worker, to teacher, to student, to housewife.  One of my favorite memories of a circuit court judge is when he was asked to introduce himself in a public meeting.  He said, “I’m a born again Christian disguised as a circuit court judge.”  It was beautiful.

Suburban churches are often large, they always seem to be working on a building project of one kind or another, and there is an endless supply of young families and programs for all ages.  Here is my problem with that, they often have embraced the American Dream Attitudes.  Blessed is the feel-good, comfortable stuff.  What happens when feel good turns to injury, illness,  job loss or even death?  All of a sudden, are they no long blessed?  And you have to redefine your view of God.

In my opinion, that is what is so very dangerous about the American Dream Attitudes.  God is still God when pain and trials hit.  As a matter of fact, that is when we should rely on him more.  We sing songs in our churches about Him being the “Strong Tower” and when pain comes, He is.  But what seems to happen is that people get so immersed in the strivings of this world that when faced with a “trial, “ or even an inconvenience, they wonder where God is and why He  is allowing this and not blessing them.  In reality He does allow trials, so we grow up in Christ.  You do not grow when life is easy.  That’s how it works.   We get stretched and we grow.

Jesus said to pray for your enemies.  He did not say it so they would get worldly things.  He said it because He knew praying for your enemies would bring revelation that will result in real growth, and yes, it will likely bring some pain with it, how can it not?

The Parable of the Sower   Matthew 13:3-9, 18-23

3 Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4 As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5 Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. 6 But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. 9 Whoever has ears, let them hear."

18 “Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: 19 When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path. 20 The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. 21 But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. 22 The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful. 23 But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”

Please note verse 7 and verse 22 - Living the American Dream Attitudes will not make you lose your salvation, it simply will make you unfruitful.  Please note:  “deceitfulness of wealth”.  In my opinion that is the biggest waste of the life of a Christian there is.  What is the point of being comfortable and going to Heaven while millions of people perish?  How can you be comfortable with that?  Remember the movie The Titanic?  Those in the lifeboats were safe and all around them other passengers were drowning.  And there were empty seats in the lifeboat.  That is what I am here to tell you, study the real Beatitudes and you will see that nowhere in there did Jesus say be comfortable.  He tells me to go get them!  And the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.  Be one of the few.  The time is short what are you waiting for?  

Matthew 5:3-12

He said:

3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit,

    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 Blessed are those who mourn,

    for they will be comforted.

5 Blessed are the meek,

    for they will inherit the earth.

6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,

    for they will be filled.

7 Blessed are the merciful,

    for they will be shown mercy.

8 Blessed are the pure in heart,

    for they will see God.

9 Blessed are the peacemakers,

    for they will be called children of God.

10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,

    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

I personally lost the American Dream ideals long ago, when my life fell apart.  In 1987, I lost my health, my child, my home, my freedom, future children, many career choices, and my good reputation among other things.  It was replaced with an education into the science of mental illness, the introduction into the criminal justice system, and a whole lot more.  I used to say I lay flat out bleeding.  At first, and quite frankly for a lot of years, I was very angry with God for treating me so badly.  Why was I His punching bag?  Only when I embraced the path He was leading me on did new life begin.  I had to find a way to rebuild.  Rebuild I did, but not with my college education or my dream job, but with the singled-minded goal of trusting in the Lord.

 Zechariah 4:6  ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty.

I pray that people stop buying what they are being sold.  I rarely watch TV but when I do I find it more and more offensive as they seem to push the boundaries of entertainment to new lows.  When you take a pot of water, put it on the stove and put a frog in it, the frog is comfortable in the water.  As the burner is turned up and the water gets hotter the frog’s body adjusts to the temperature.  Once the water is boiling the frog has lost his ability to jump out and is a party to his own death.   In the world, the “temperature” is getting hot.  If you don’t sense it remember our friend the frog.  It could be you are so immersed in it that you don’t notice. 

Nothing in the American Dream is wrong on its own.  And for my overseas friends the hopes of bettering your life is not wrong either.  What is wrong is when God is taken out of the equation and you are left with empty material possessions and a dream where you are lord. 

Now so I don’t leave you discouraged, please look at verses 8 and 23 (Bold & Italics) – That is where the payoff is.  If some can be choked out and unfruitful then others can produce a great crop for the God.

He tells us how to be fruitful and where to store our treasures.

Matthew 6:19-20

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.

When I see people spending thousands of dollars on their homes and toys I think, “Really, how long are you going to be here because I for one am a foreigner on earth and this is not my final home.”  I pray we start acting more like soldiers who are in the army of God and aware of our enemy, who is not flesh and blood, and stop acting like we are on a three day pass on furlough.

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