Thoughts on Babylon

I started a new Bible Study with some women from my church this last Monday. We are going through a Beth Moore study on the book of Daniel. I'm pretty excited to delve into this book as I've kind of shied away from it feeling like it's too much to take on...prophecy, endtimes stuff, yikes. And yet it contains all those "oh so simple" Bible stories of Daniel and the Lion's Den, the fiery furnace, etc.

So, in our first session Beth Moore (via video) talked about the comparisons between Babylon at the height of it's success and present day America (or pick your choice of prosperous, wealthy, nation). Babylon (in Isaiah 47) is encapsulated by the phrase, "I am and there is no one besides me." (this is HUMANS saying this, not God). We talked about the concept of living for your own pleasure, as if you deserve all the things in your life. Now, before you dismiss me as ranting and being an American-culture hater, just stop and give it a thought as to how true this is in our society. I currently live in the suburbs of the third wealthiest county in the nation. There is not a thing I can't get to satisfy every whim I have within a 10 mile radius of me...and if I can't find it there I can get on the internet and find it. Now, this is not necessarily a bad thing, but what I do with all those choices and luxuries is where the true matter is. Where is my heart?

As we were gathering together I had that sense, you know the one, of conviction from the Holy Spirit. When I return from overseas I tend to be a bit overindulgent. I find myself thinking, "because I can." I'm going to have the large coffee, topped to overflowing with whipped cream and carmel, because I can. I'm going to watch tv for 4 hours because I can. I'm going to buy some new clothes for myself because I can...now, these things are not wrong inherently, but my attitude is. I find myself bemoaning my self-martyrdom status due to giving up these things (by necessity) while overseas and then letting the pendulum swing back and control my life here.

And now that I have all this in the back of my head, I've been noticing it all around me. I was reading the magazine "Real Simple" and they had a whole article on reorganizing women's closets so they can maximize what they have. They said that most women are finding they have too much clothing and can't utilize all that they own. One woman in the article had THREE FULL CLOSETS in her home!!!! The article was teaching her how to organize it so she could streamline her process of chosing her outfit in the morning! what?! Then I sat in the coffeeshop milking my small cup of regular cup of coffee for all it's worth (free refills!! I was shaking a bit). A guy came in and ordered something that the coffee shop was out of. He proceeded, in a very loud voice, to express his frustration. He said (and I quote), "You do understand how mad I am that I came here and wanted one certain thing and you don't even have it?! I will be back here this time tomorrow and you'd better have that drink. I don't want to be disappointed again." If our needs can't be met immediately, in the exact way that we want them to, we flip out and lash out at those around us. "I am and there is no one besides me." yikes.

So, I'm excited about this study, and nervous at the same time. The Bible has that way of "reading you" as well, doesn't it? I think it was Martin Luther that said, "The Bible is alive--it has hands and grabs hold of me, it has feet and runs after me."