Genesis 31:30 “And now, though thou wouldest needs be gone, because thou sore longedst after thy father’s house, yet wherefore hast thou stolen my gods?”
The Obsession of Possession
Do you know about the obsession of possession? Well, have you ever wanted something so badly that you were completely focused in on it? I have a jacket in my closet that I wanted for eight years. Yes, eight years! That jacket is ten years old now and worth something only to me. I still love that jacket, but isn’t being obsessed about a jacket kind of dumb? I agree! You may not be obsessed about a jacket, but there is something about which you are obsessed.
When you are possessed with possessions, you are not the owner; you are the one owned. Possessions, like idols, are gods that own us when we think we own them. When you begin to be obsessed with possessions, it is amazing all of the heartache you incur. Fighting and confusion will follow the man or woman who is possessed with possessions.
Jacob was a schemer obsessed with possessions. Remember Esau and the birthright? Remember the troubles he had with Laban, Rachel, and Leah? The confrontation in Genesis 31 was over a bunch of stolen gods. Who owned whom? What a life of trouble!
It is much better to see yourself as belonging to the God than to see yourself as the overseer of your “gods” (possessions). Never forget that possessions own us when we begin to think we own them. Don’t live your week under the obsession for more possessions. Live instead under the possession and provision of God Almighty.