The things I want, I want.. NOW
I recently wrote a blog post about the things I want and how quickly those things can define status for me. As I pondered the questions on how those things can quickly become status symbols, I realized that this issue is deeper than just how things define status. Not only do I love name brand items and the status I gain with them, I am unwilling to wait to own those things. I want what I want and I want it NOW.
This demand to live in society with the greatest and the best is masked under this demand for instant gratification. Everything can be at my fingertips, so why should I wait for anything? I want hot coffee and with just a few button taps, my coffee is brewing. Gone are the days of waiting for the water to boil and then allowing time for coffee to brew. If I want a hamburger, I can drive up to a big screen full of options, speak to a little black box, drive front a few feet and have a hot hamburger within a few minutes. This instantaneous service creates a reality for me that what I want, I can have now.
What is the cost of now?
“Success awaits those who steadfastly commit to any requisite sacrifice.”
― Ken Poirot
Where is the instant gratification keeping me from something better?
One of the areas that instant gratification is not helping people is in the area of finances. The idea that I can get rich quick is a concept that traps people into debt and poverty for a life-time. Casinos make millions on people who desire to get rich quick. The rags to riches mentality that used to be a big piece of the American dream has fallen to the way side. People are unwilling to work their way to riches, they want it handed to them. In fact, they believe they deserve to have it handed to them (Golden).
Before I stereotype all Americans, let me clarify that this does not include everyone. There are many people committed to higher education, working hard, and earning their stripes. Yet, what is the purpose of this commitment? Are we still following the American Dream? Do we long for America to be great again as Donald Trump promises?
As I mentioned in my other blog about the holiday consumerism, credit card debt is a problem for the average American (MagnifyMoney). This tells me that we as a country are struggling not only with greed but with a problem of hard work and patience. We want what we want but we want it right now. I don’t like having to work for 5 years before being able to buy the car I want. I would prefer to drive that car now and put it on a loan. Not only do I want to get what I want, I want other people to have what they want to. Credit cards only reinforce this concept and I can quickly fall into debt.
A quick look into American society can teach us a lot about instant gratification. We make a big deal about people who win the lottery or big TV Shows. A recent lottery winner quit her job on the spot. She had attained the reward she wanted and now she was going to go after those things she had been dreaming about. This winner threw out all the financial advice. Winning big is what it is about. Somehow, she missed the concept of financially planning from here (Hess). What she has now — will it last?
Another area we see this consumeristic or win big mentality is in the gambling world. One look at the casino revenue in United States will tell you that Americans are bought into this idea of a financial quick fix. Since 2009 the annual revenue for casinos is climbing every year (Statista). These numbers speak to a culture that is seeking something. What is it that we so desperately seek?
A study done by Standford Research discovered that being able to wait for rewards was a quality that was found in people who become successful for the long haul. In their research, they took children one by one into a room alone and offered them a marshmallow. They also told the children to wait until an adult came back into the room before they could eat the marshmallow. If they waited, they would receive two marshmallows. If they didn’t wait, they would only have the one marshmallow. Years later, they kept following the children from the case study as they became adults. The children who were able to wait for two marshmallows essentially were more successful in life (Clear).
What this case study communicates to me is that waiting for rewards is a lifestyle that can be taught to children. This gives me hope. Today, we can impact the next generation by teaching and training our children to live differently than the social norm of today. First, we need to believe that lasting rewards really do come to those who are willing to work and wait. After we really believe that, only then, can we teach our children.
Where do we go from here?
From a Biblical perspective, we are called to operate under a different mentality than the norm. Instant rewards are not part of the lifestyle Christ taught. He calls us to live differently and operate under a different set of values (Heddendorf, 106). This means I am called to live in the waiting and work hard.
In Hebrews, we find a verse that encourages us to live a life that is different than the typical American Dream. “And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end, so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises” (Heb. 6:11–12). We are called to live a life of patience. As a Christian, not all the promises of God are realized to me in this moment.
This issue can be a difficult tension for Christians. I struggle to believe in the promises of God when I don’t see them working out today. And yet, Christ calls me to live in faith. Hebrews also list all the people who lived and died in faith not having received the promises (Heb. 11:39). I do not like living with this tension. I prefer instant rewards. Yet, rewards that are not instant are often far more worth it.
One of the ways I see this tension in my life is in the college setting. I want to advance in my career and my education, but the work that I choose to go through to advance is sometimes painful. Hours of homework, loss of social life, less time with precious family is one of those sacrifices that cost me something. Yet, I know in the bigger picture these inconveniences are temporary compared to the reward that will come on the other side.
The choice to live the different lifestyle of patience service is so radically different for every person. What God calls me to will look different than the life He will call you to. However, both of us have a choice in what value system we will buy into. I can choose to live simply for greater rewards in heaven. Or, I can choose to live with my rewards now and loose them in an instant like the man with the stocked barns in Jesus’ parable (Luke 12).
Rewards for the Christian are not always tangible and evident here on earth. Sometimes we live a lifetime of not seeing the tangible rewards that are promised to us. Yet, we should not grow weary in living differently.
Will I live for the American Dream or the Christian Dream?
The more I think about the concept of instant gratification or gratification that is delayed, the more I realize how much influence society has on Christianity. What system are we aligned to? I believe it is time the Christians step into the gap with boldness and live differently than those around us. The alternative we have to the big win idea is far less appealing in our consumeristic lifestyle.
It is hard to lay down my life. I really do enjoy getting things I want. I enjoy the fleeting moments of immediate gratification. I like instant service.
But more than anything, I know I am called to live differently. Christ offers a lifestyle that promises big time rewards. I know that those promises are worth it in the long run.
In those moments when you are tempted to settle, what reward will you choose?
But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard,
nor the heart of man imagined,
what God has prepared for those who love him” — 1 Cor. 2:9
Works Cited:
Alexus Monique Golden, Special to The Observer. “The American Dream: Rags to Riches.”Houston Chronicle, 31 May 2011, www.chron.com/neighborhood/atascocita/opinion/article/The-American-Dream-Rags-to-riches-9364088.php.
“Average Household Credit Card Debt in America: 2017 Statistics.” MagnifyMoney, 15 Sept. 2017, www.magnifymoney.com/blog/news/u-s-credit-card-debt-by-the-numbers628618371/.
Clear, James. “40 Years of Stanford Research Found That People With This One Quality Are More Likely to Succeed.” James Clear, 26 Sept. 2017, jamesclear.com/delayed-gratification.
Heddendorf, Russell. “Status and Role.” Christian Perspectives on Sociology, edited by Stephen A. Grunlan and Milton Reimer, Wipf and Stock Publishers, 2001.
Hess, Abigail. “The Winner of the $758.7 Million Powerball Jackpot Has Quit Her Job.”CNBC, CNBC, 25 Aug. 2017, www.cnbc.com/2017/08/24/the-winner-of-the-758-point-7-million-powerball-jackpot-has-quit-her-job.html.
Poirot, Ken. Quotes About Delayed Gratification (30 Quotes). www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/delayed-gratification.
The Bible. English Standard Version, Crossway, 2008.
“U.S. Casino Gaming Market Revenue 2015 | Statistic.” Statista, www.statista.com/statistics/271583/casino-gaming-market-in-the-us/.
