Joe White Drive Time Podcast

"Idols, good grief! They're everywhere. Bigger biceps, bigger diamonds, more diamonds, bigger paychecks, bigger houses, a newer car, faster car, you know, one more pair of shoes."

Family Discussions:

1. How do material things become idols?
2. Can you identify with things that have become idols to you?
3. How do we get out of the, "I want a little bit more" trip?

Transcription:

00:14 Today I want to tell you about the richest kids in the world and interestingly enough, all they have everyday is one bowl of beans and rice but they're the richest kids I know. We're in First Timothy Chapter six verses six through 10 and it says this, "but godliness is actually a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment for we have brought nothing into the world. So we cannot take anything out of the world either. If we have food and covering with these, we shall be content. But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and snare and many foolish and harmful desires, which plunge men into ruin and destruction for the love of money is the root of all sorts of evil. And some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs." Idols good grief.

01:16 They're everywhere. Bigger biceps, bigger diamonds, more diamonds, bigger paychecks, bigger houses, a newer car, faster car, you know, one more pair of shoes. Uh, you know, I think kind of the big black hole in America that we absorb enough resources to easily feed the rest of the starving world. And we still need more to be happy. It's crazy isn't it? You know, more, you know, give me more, I want more. What happened to enough already? You know, these wonderful Kamps that I get to work with. You know, we've, we've adopted these 18 schools in Haiti and we've got these 6,000 kids that we get to take care of it and these precious kids have got one shirt and one pair of shoes and they'll wear the shirt the whole year, taken home at night, wash it, and they look great every single day. They get one bowl of beans and rice for lunch and some of them, that's their meal for the day.

02:18 That's it. That's all they've ever known and they are thrilled to death to get it. You know, who do you think is the happiest? American kids or Haitian kids? You know, honestly, I've seen more smiles in Haiti than I have in America. In some way, they're more content and happy. I've never seen the Haitian kids fight or shoot each other, threaten a teacher or call each other, their parents degrading names, never in all my trips down there. On the other end, I just meet so many, you know, kids in our country, you know, who really love God, who would give the shirt off their back to someone in need. I see that in some super grateful American kids. In fact I believe these, you know, which some people call Gen X kids have more representatives that are even less materialistic than the generation that proceeded them.

03:13 And you know what, for me that is so encouraging as I work with kids. We've got these kids at our Kamp who will pack 6,000 Christmas bags and we'll take Christmas gifts to the kids in Haiti. And I see kids excited about going to Africa and mission trips like never before. Because the bottom line is that material things become idols. And I think our kids are seeing that, you know, anything material that you and I wouldn't give up in a heartbeat to someone who needed it worse is probably becoming an idol. And you know what, man? Things don't satisfy. You can never have enough. That's why scripture puts such a high price on contentment. It's one commodity you just can't get enough of. And here's the questions for today. How do material things become idols? And then, uh, and then secondly, can you identify with things that have become idols to you? And then the third question today is, how do we get out of the, "I want a little bit more" trip? And the lifeline today is this: Material things always leave you wanting more, but contentment satisfies always.

"Just because that stuff's out there, even a little bit, can literally be stored in your mind forever. So don't be captive."

Family Discussion:

• What are the types of hollow and deceptive philosophies that are being promoted through today's pop culture?
• While it's one thing to read the biblical admonition, to see to it that no one takes you captive, it's another thing to live it out. How do you, in a practical way, not allow these entertainment messages that are contrary to Christ teachings into your spirit and into your mind?
• What are the possible consequences of hiding entertainment and indulging entertainment, hiding thoughts, that applauds behavior, that applauds language and attitudes that you know are not Christ honoring?

Transcription:

00:06 Every day when we get into this Bible, I'm just reminded again about just how incomparable, just how awesome, how amazing it is, the words of this book, huge what we're doing together everyday. We're in Colossians today, chapter 2, verse 4-8. This is awesome. Paul says: "I say this so that no one will delude you with persuasive argument for even though I'm absent in body, nevertheless, I'm with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good discipline and the stability of your faith in Christ. Therefore, as you have received Christ Jesus our Lord, so walk in him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up and established in your faith and overflowing with gratitude." And then he comes back again in verse eight, he says, "see to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy or empty deception according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world rather than according to Christ."

01:24 The deal today is, do you want to be captive or do you want to be free? Do you know that this little 2.5 pound mass of gray matter inside of your skull, your brain has about 10 billion cells, something like that. Scientists have taught us through study with the brain through the years that every cell in the brain is a little trap. Every cell that's connected by millions and billions and literally probably a trillion neurons, little highways connect the cells in your brain so that everything you see and everything you hear and everything you touch and everything you taste, every thing you smell is stored in your brain. I think that's why pornography is such an incredibly evil drug because there's a little hormone released in your brain called Epinephrin that every time you see a picture of a girl or a boy that's unclothing or unclothed in a pornographic way, that that picture is stored and it's printed like a print in a photography dark room. It's printed on that piece of paper, that thought, that pictures printed in your mind. And it can literally stay there forever. The magazines that are coming after us, the iPhones, the iPods, the iTunes, the movies the television, the magazines, etc. I'm telling you, because I know I've counseled the kids, and I've counseled the adults through the years that became captive, literally became slaves, of some of this stuff that was coming into their minds. You can put bitterness into your mind through music. You can put hatred in your mind. You can put rebellion and anger in your mind. You can put pornography in your mind. It'll ruin your marriage with your boy or a girl; or you can put God in your mind.

03:26 I remember I used to do a teen talk radio show for years with Focus on the Family. And we would be in hundreds of stations all over the country and kids would call in from all over America. And I remember one boy called me one time and he liked to smoke marijuana and he thought that a little marijuana wasn't bad. And he said, well, "God made marijuana. So it's got to be good." And I don't know why I said this, but I said, "God made poison ivy too. And God made rattlesnakes too. So you going go out and smoke them or you going to go play with them?" Just because that stuff's out there, even a little bit, can literally be stored in your mind forever. So don't be captive.

04:08 The greatest adoption story in the antithesis of that is my buddy Chris, he adopted three kids - three kids from the inner city, three kids that their lives were going south. They were going nowhere. Those three kids were literally becoming a product of the world's system, but he adopted those kids, and he filled those kids with love. He filled their minds with Christ. And I'm telling you, those kids graduated from high school. They were of the most outstanding kids in their high school and are now in college because they filled their minds with love and they filled their minds with God.

04:43 Here's the question today. What are the types of hollow and deceptive philosophies that are being promoted through today's pop culture? And then secondly: While it's one thing to read the biblical admonition, to see to it that no one takes you captive, it's another thing to live it out. How do you, in a practical way, not allow these entertainment messages that are contrary to Christ teachings into your spirit and into your mind? And then talk about this with your family. What are the possible consequences of hiding entertainment and indulging entertainment, hiding thoughts, that applauds behavior, that applauds language and attitudes that you know are not Christ honoring and know are going to abuse your temple, as God says of the Holy Spirit that lives in you? Here's the lifeline today: Write down two or three of your favorite music groups or television shows or movies. Go ahead and write them down and then ask yourself the question, Do you believe that any of these fall into the hollow and deceptive philosophy category that Paul warns you about? And if so, what do you need to do about those?

"I count all little things but rubbish for the sake of Christ."

Family Discussion:

• What have you given up for Jesus lately?
• What wouldn't you give if he or his standards demanded you're released from that?
• Can you describe how this verse today can honestly be a reality in your life?

Transcription:

00:06 You can put a lot on a little disc that slips in the side of a computer or slips into a CD player or a DVD player. Today I want to talk about that and I want to talk about what we really love with our whole heart. Philippians chapter 3 verses 8-11, oh, this is an awesome passage of scripture. We've got to take this thing in our heart today. Check this out. Paul says: "More than that, I count all things to be lost in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus, my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ and may be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the law, but that which is through faith in God, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith. Oh, that I might know him in the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings being conformed to his death in order that I might attain the resurrection from the dead." He calls the rest of it just plain rubbish.

01:21 I love the way the Bible expresses God's love for you and me. It's so incredibly reassuring, and I love the way the Bible expresses God's commands for you and me. It's so incredibly guiding, and I love the way the Bible expresses God's grace to you and me. It's so incredibly encouraging. But I also love how the Bible expresses God's challenges for you and me. It's so wonderfully stretching, isn't it? Today's passage will help you evaluate the size of your love for Jesus more than almost any other. You ready for this? Let me ask you a question: What's your favorite title or position? Think about it for a minute. Is it a tangible item, like a car, a house, a girlfriend, boyfriend, a diamond necklace, a letter jacket, a savings account, your own room. Is it an elected position like cheerleader football captain, Senator, congressman, CEO, president, all district and basketball, or All-State band. Would you give it up for Jesus? Really? Would you, if someone needed it worse than you, would you give it to him or her for the sake of Christ? While you ponder that thought for a minute, let me pose a more practical question. Would you give him your favorite CD or your favorite DVD if you saw a lyric or scene that was not honoring to God. How about your favorite TV show or your favorite sitcom series? How about a new movie that's a hit down at the local theater? What about a relationship that's no longer to him? Or what about a habit? What about a computer screen? What about immoral value? Truthfully, an idol is anything, anything you or I hang on to that has gotten in the way of a truly pure relationship with Christ. Idols lower the value of God in our lives. That's what they do.

03:20 Giving up things that are, that are dear to us raises his value extensively. So the questions for the day are this: What have you given up for Jesus lately? And then: What wouldn't you give if he or his standards demanded you're released from that? And then the third question: Can you describe how this verse today can honestly be a reality in your life? I count all little things but rubbish for the sake of Christ. Here's the lifeline today. He gave it all for us so we can give it all for him.