America’s Disease

In the buffet line of the seven deadly sins, it seems that Americans have piled their plates high with greed. In an article in the Chicago Sun Times, Andrew Greely called greed “American’s disease.” Foreclosed homes and corporate scandals speak to the accuracy of his diagnosis. And perhaps nowhere is that more obvious than in Las Vegas, a city built on greed.

We all want more. A study was done where they asked people in all different income brackets how much more money they would need to make to be content. Guess what the amount was? 23% more. For almost every income bracket! Poor people picked a number about 23% more than they were making, and so did the rich! We live in the United States of More, where “In More We Trust.”

The problem is that more is never enough. There’s no amount that will ever satisfy us. And so we need to combat greed in our lives. How do we do that? Well, partly through gratitude and generosity. Instead of thinking of what we don’t have and want, we need to think of what we do have and are grateful for. And instead of always trying to get more, we need to give more away.

And Thanksgiving seems like a good day to start thinking and living this way. Don’t ya think?

To learn more about leaving behind the mundane and really living the life, check out my book, I Became A Christian And All I Got Was This Lousy T-Shirt.