The Things I Shouldn't Care About (minor confessions)

Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

Colossians 3:2-4

It is easy to live for myself and this world. I only write about the things that strike a chord, so you see a certain side of who I am (although it is genuine, it isn't all of me, I don't think its possible to fully know someone via screen anyways, but that's neither here nor there) you miss out on my superficial thoughts, the daily ones that pass through my mind. 


I just "Webstered" (Webster would not approve of me turning this into a verb) the word superficial to see if that would accurately describe the me I am trying to get at. 

So you can fully understand. 

It's a harsh word, I was hoping it wouldn't, but it did a little bit.


Last week I bought a pair of nude colored shoes, Steve Maddens. Todd and I have personal money each month, mine generally goes to clothes, shoes and nail polish. His goes to books. I am a reader, but ya right like I am going to spend all my monthly money on books. 


I already have three pairs of nude colored shoes, I did not need these. (Sidenote: out of all the colors of shoes why am I still getting this color? I am so weird). 


We went to a wedding last weekend, I have skirts and dresses. Lots of them. But I bought something new, so that the next time a wedding rolls around I can flip through my clothes and think...I have nothing to wear, this  little blue skirt will by thrown in with the rest of the items deemed unworthy for the event. 

So cute, yet so unnecessary. 

I went through a phase in college where I desperately wanted to be "Indie." I remember buying my first pair of skinny jeans and then...nude flats (RIP, you have left your legacy). Clothing and music were the things I thought on most, by this point I was walking with the Lord, but my wake up call began to nap and I became distracted.


The socially acceptable numb. 


Our neighborhood pool opened this weekend. This is one of my favorite things about where we live, all the benefits of having our own pool (it literally is across the street from us) but no maintenance on our part. 


I cleaned our house, did some laundry and headed to Sams to get a second pair of Steve Maddens, they were such a good deal I couldn't let it go, the exact same kind as the first only in gold (y'all I legitimately wish I was kidding, but for the sake of what this entire post is about I couldn't leave it out). 



I swung into Neighborhood Market on my way home to get sunscreen and debated getting a magazine. I haven't bought a magazine in probably over a year, I used to get them all the time but it's a waste of money and makes my brain feel mushy and numb. 


Despite my better judgement I got it  anyway. Halfway through the verse at the top came to mind. Why do I do this? Why do I temporarily choose to fill my mind with things on this earth that will never ever transfer over to the next? And what does it really mean to set my mind on things above?


Because my immediate response to that is to picture clouds and angels. Those are above right? I actually wrestled with it a little bit last week, "Lord if I fix my eyes on things above then I am not living fully where I am now, shouldn't I be content here?" 


But that isn't what this verse is saying. 


I read a commentary  that said it so well...


"The thought of Christ and heaven being above and the sinful things of earth being below is misleading when understood merely in the sense of altitude. "The things above" are rather the things of higher importance, more exalted principles, and spiritual rather than carnal."


There is nothing wrong with buying clothes, make up and shoes. Or reading magazines and listening to certain music. It's when they consume your thoughts that it becomes an issue. It's when our mind travels down the road of obsession, "I need black shoes, I need a new swimsuit, I need that red nail polish, I need that for our living room,  I need that album, I need, I need, I need."


I think we always have to be aware that those things (the earthly things) will never leave us feeling full. We'll be on the constant look out for momentary satisfaction. 


When I think about the things of higher importance, my mind is drawn to the relationships around me. My relationship with Todd, family, friends, employees and my cell group girls. These things will carry over. My nude flats will not. 


When I think about exalted principles. I think about The Gospel, how Jesus lived and how I am now called to live. When I think about the spiritual, I think about the Fruits of the Spirit (and the dumb song that helped me memorize them)  and how these should daily reflect what's inside of me. 

Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self Control. 

Personally this is a constant battle, to actually think about those things on a daily basis. 

Because...that girls outfit is so cute and what is the song that's on right now? 

-Kels