I wrote about this idea in a previous blog (Create not Consume) but my brain would not stop thinking about it. Or maybe I should have spent more time thinking about it before I wrote my blog post…Anyways, I wanted to explore the idea that when we consume we are consumed by the very thing we think will bring us joy.
The consume mentality is really all about self. The create mentality is not necessarily just about focusing on others but it does take the focus off of self. When we consume it’s all about fulfilling our own wants and needs to the point of excess. By definition, consume means to devour, to take in, to use up.*
Random thought but this makes me think about the movie Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. I think about the five kids who got to enter Willy Wonka’s factory and how they were focused on consuming but Willy Wonka was about creating. Just think about the reason the kids lost/had to leave the factory, it was because they became so obsessed with consuming that they didn’t care about the consequences (like being sucked into the chocolate waterfall or turning into a giant blueberry). Willy Wonka could have created his amazing “world of pure imagination” and then not shared it with anyone but what good would that have been? He created this “world” to be shared with others and to bring them joy!
That is what I believe is the difference between consuming and creating. Consuming is all about us and our attempt to find “joy” but it rarely lasts. When we create it brings us lasting joy because it makes not only us happy but also brings joy to others with whom we share our creation with. Think about the last time you gave someone a gift and the joy that it brought them. Or the last time you created something and the joy you felt when people praised it or said they enjoyed it.
Now think about the times that you have consumed. You begin to consume something and slowly if you are not careful you became consumed by the very thing that was “supposed” to bring you joy. Just go back to the definition of consume, “to devour, to take in, to use up.” It makes me think of the following quote:
“Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay.” -Unknown
We fall into the lie that the very thing we are consuming is bringing us joy when in reality it is destroying us. This goes all the way back to the creation of man in the Garden of Eden. God created paradise for man and woman to enjoy. He gave them work, purpose, and anything they needed but it wasn’t enough. Satan convinced Adam and Eve that it wasn’t enough and they should consume the forbidden fruit because it would bring them joy. What happened when they ate? Their lives were ruined forever.
Just think about how addictions work. Addictions are all about one’s personal consumption and trying to find “joy” in some “thing” but that thing ends up leaving one with a feeling of emptiness. Addictions promise one thing but offer another. Just like the fruit in the garden. It looked “good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom” (Genesis 3:6) but it led to death. Adam and Eve learned that any “thing” sought after to give joy and meaning will leave you empty. True joy is found in God alone. When we have this joy it allows us to live without the need to look towards things to give us meaning. It doesn’t mean we are free from the temptations to want to consume again but are no longer controlled by it.
34 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. 35 Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” -John 8:34-36
I believe the opposite of addiction/consuming is creating. To create simply means “to make or bring into existence.”** Let me be clear in what I am saying: I am not saying that instead of consuming one’s particular addiction one begins to create the source of addiction. For example, the drug addict should not create drugs to bring “joy” to others. The creating I am talking about is a healthy creation of something that brings true joy. Something that makes one happy. Something that benefits others and can bring them joy as well.
I am reminded of another passage of scripture from the Bible found in Ephesians 4:28:
“Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need.”
Why would Paul, the author of Ephesians, tell the person(s) who has been stealing to not just quit but doing something useful with their own hands? I think it comes back to the idea of create not consume. I am definitely not a scholar on this text but my interpretation on it is that Paul is saying to the thief, “Quit selfishly consuming and instead create something to bring joy to others.” The thief gets a rush from stealing because they can have what they want even if they can’t afford it. If you tell the thief to just stop they will not likely succeed because they need to replace this bad habit with a good habit, right? So instead of the thief using their hands to take and consume, they now use their hands to create and give to others. This will give them more joy and satisfaction than stealing ever could.
Consuming is easy. Creating is hard. Point in case: it’s easier to drive thru and get fast food than go home and cook a meal. Consuming comes naturally. Creating takes effort and work. Consuming is autopilot. It’s what comes natural to us so we have to fight against.
We have to fight against it in our marriages and/or relationships. If you have more of a consume mentality than a create mentality in your marriage it is not going to go well. If in marriage if all you do is consume meaning you believe your spouse should meet all your needs, serve you, and you don’t really give anything back then it is going to fail. You have to pursue your spouse. You have to learn what they like and then go create opportunities to do those things with them. Create ways to serve and love them.
We have to fight against it in our parenting. We all know that as parents we can’t be focused on ourselves and ignore our kids but how many of us spend too much time mindlessly scrolling on our phones? Or catching up on the latest TV show? Or leave our families to go do our own hobbies? Or are more focused on making money than making memories?
Think about all the different relationships you are in: what if in each of those relationships you strove to out create the other person? What if everyone had that mentality? Instead of being focused on self and our own needs we would focus on others and their needs. Think about how that would change the world!
*https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/consume **https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/create