random ramblings

On last Sunday night, I had the pleasure of seeing Steve Bell in concert. I've probably been to at least ten of his concerts before, but I never seem to tire of listening to his music and his stories. I always find them to be somewhat of a rejuvenating thing for me - a Spirit-lifter, I guess you could say. Anyways, any of you who have ever been to a Steve Bell concert knows that he tells a lot of stories, and talks a lot in between songs. Some of what he said on Sunday night really struck a chord with me, because it's a lot of the same stuff that I've been mulling over lately. I found myself sitting there, nodding my head, as he put it into words so much better than I ever could have. I'm going to attempt to put some of it into words right now though - and hopefully it comes out right.

Steve just recently spent several weeks in Ethiopia, on a mission with Canadian Foodgrains Bank. Anyone who has ever spent time in a third-world country knows that you come back questioning "how we do life" here in Canada and the United States. I know I did anyways. Steve talked about how much of the poverty that we see, is a direct result of our excessiveness. We'd be kidding ourselves if we think that our materialism doesn't have at least some impact on the third-world countries. So, Steve was urging us as Canadians, but even more importantly, as Christians, to take a thorough examination of our own lives. To be willing to take little steps forward, and little leaps of faith to make a genuine change in our lives. Most people can't just up and sell everything they own in order to move to Africa, and truthfully, we don't need everyone to do that. What we need to do is be willing to take a stand against the materialism that consumes so many people around us, and not let it consume us - by refusing to buy the newest cell phone, camera, shoes, clothes, etc.

The whole thing of materialism has really gotten me down since returning from Zambia this past summer. I'm to the point where I can't even really stand going to the mall, as I just find myself getting annoyed with all the people there frantically buying things that they "need". Our concept of the word "need" is so messed up - most of us have no idea what it means to truly "need" something.

More often than not, I just find myself overwhelmed by it all. I feel overwhelmed by the amount of clothes I see hanging in my closet. I feel overwhelmed when I think of the amount of money in sales being processed at any single point in time. I feel overwhelmed when I see girls consumed with the need to have the newest and hippest piece of fashion.

And while things like Project(Red) are worthwhile in that they make people start to think beyond themselves, I personally think that they are a sad commentary on our society/culture. In order to get people to donate money to places where it is really needed, they need to spend more money on themselves, on things that they don't really need. The fact that 50% or 60% goes to charity soothes their conscience enough, and makes them think that they're actually doing their part in helping. So, while I have a lot of respect for Bono, and do not hold anything against anybody who owns any of the (Red) products, I find the whole concept of it to be somewhat frustrating.

I remember being in Zambia in 2003, and thinking what it would take to move Zambia and other countries similar to it forward and upward onto a similar playing field as Canada and the States. I soon realized that I was asking the wrong question, and should have been asking what it will take for Canada and the States to take several steps backwards and downwards. There just wouldn't be enough money and resources if the whole world were to become as excessive as we are here. Rather, we must be willing to make sacrifices. To say 'no' to materialism, and to be generous with our time and money.

To wrap things up here, I don't have the answers, and I'm just as bad as the next person when it comes to spending money on myself. But I agree that it is time to take a thorough examination of our lives - and begin to make changes. Each small step will make a difference.