Can Vicious Circles Be Disrupted?

New generations are given an identity. The generation of the 1970s was called the me generation, labeled as greedy or self-centered. Greed describes a vicious circle comprised of acquiring, feeling discontented, and then repeating the circle.

An ancient philosopher noted, “There is no calamity greater than lavish desires, no greater guilt than discontentment, and no greater disaster than greed.” Economies depend on vicious circles of buying to satisfy desires and then becoming discontented again.

Listen to Habakkuk 2:5: “Wealth is deceitful. Greedy people are proud and restless,…and never satisfied.” This vicious circle can be disrupted by seeking spiritual wealth, which consists of faith and trust in Jesus Christ. Proverbs 10:22 is assuring: “The blessings of the Lord bring wealth with no troubles added on.” So count your blessings, name them one by one, and be truly surprised by what God has done.

                

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[Jesus said,] “Let not your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in me.” 

~John 14:1 Revised Standard Version

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Christ, Crucified and Alive in Us

Internal conflict differs from struggles between individuals. Internal conflicts that go unresolved will predictably surface at a later place and time. This happens because a particular struggle has been too painful to talk or think about. Although out of mind for a while, it has the power to surface and to influence daily life.

Lisa couldn’t wait to leave home for college. She chose a university that was as far away as possible. She grew up feeling overly protected. Her parents did not trust her to make good choices, to the point of being overbearing. Their control created in Lisa anger and fear which she could not express.

Arriving at college, she threw caution to the wind for a carefree lifestyle. Eventually, Lisa became so unhappy she was forced to address the anger and sadness she had stuffed away. While it's difficult to work out such pain and suffering, with God's help and the love and trust of caring people, a new purpose and direction for life can be discovered.

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 Jesus said,“Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me.”

~John 14:1 New Living Translation    

I died on the cross with Christ. And my present life is not that of the old “I”, but the living Christ within me. The bodily life I now live, I live believing in the Son of God who loved me and sacrificed himself for me.

~Galatians 2:20 Phillips – New Testament in Modern English     

Intimacy: The Power of Trust - Part 3

Martin Luther, the Catholic monk who pioneered the Protestant Reformation in the sixteenth century, told a group of young men whom he was mentoring not to consider marriage until they were at least thirty years of age. He believed it took this long for most men to mature enough to be for their wife and children something other than just the provider of their basic needs.

The more secure and settled a person's identity, the less likely power struggles will dominate a marriage relationship. Power struggles exist where one or both of the marriage partners feel diminished emotionally, intellectually, or physically. Where power struggles are present, the less intimacy, honesty, and closeness there will be in a marriage.

Power struggles are about striving for dominance over another person. Choosing to let go of control is choosing to trust, rather than to dominate. God's plan is for us to trust him rather than him forcing us to conform to his ways. Making choices for positive change means letting go of power struggles and becoming submissive to God and each other.