Destination Addiction

Do any of these describe you? Always focused on what is coming up, in a hurry and constantly feeling rushed, or struggling to commit to something for fear something else will come along. These are all symptoms of what some call destination addiction. This is when you can only be happy if you get what you don’t have or get to somewhere else. This problem has become a characteristic of the people of Israel in the book of 1 Samuel, becoming apparent when the people, even though God guided them and cared for them, demanded that Samuel appoint a man as king over them. God and His messengers performed every duty a king could and did them better. This problem came from them looking around at the other nations and seeing that they had something that the people of Israel did not, so they wanted it for themselves. These people wanted a king “like all the other nations.” They were living with their desires for the future, not content with what God provided them.

Some of us today chase future things because we are not content with the present. In 1 Timothy 6, Paul contrasts those who do not teach sound teaching and those who are godly. In verses six through eight, he says, “But godliness actually is a means of great gain, when accompanied by contentment, for we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either. And if we have food and covering, with these, we shall be content.” Here, Paul will discuss money, but the idea can be broadened to include other things. If we are not content with what we have and chase after future things, Paul says in verse nine that the end of that path is ruin and destruction.

The change in Israel’s history and government system arose because the people were not content and wanted something else. They were striving for a future destination. The lesson we can learn from their mistake is that when God provides and blesses us, we should be content with what we have. Money and a career are not inherently bad unless they become your focus and force you out of the present to chase the future.

Challenge

1. Write down two things you have been blessed with daily for a week and see why you can enjoy today and focus less on tomorrow.