Fighting the Christmas greed monster

We have two vehicles that we own as a family, and between the two we have over 400,000 miles on them. Needless to say, neither one is very nice. Lights don't always work, there are thumps and rattles galore, and things like heat and air conditioning are tentative. But since we don't have to do a lot of driving for our work, having two old beaters works just fine. It keeps things simple - no car payments, low insurance, and the adventure of never knowing when you might break down. Could it get any better than that?

I have to confess that I sometimes lust over getting a new car or truck. There are so many luxuries out there - some I haven't even heard about yet. But I think I might just keep it that way. If I don't know about them, I won't want them. So I don't let myself go peruse car lots or check in the paper for ads. I know if I did, I would begin to see that my vehicles are sub-par, and some salesman would try to convince me that I deserved better.

I like having nothing. It keeps my greed monster in check. Because I know how huge he can get, and I know how powerful he can be in reminding me that I won't be happy until I have what I deserve. It keeps me focused on what I do deserve - nothing. It keeps me humbly reminded of the simple fact that everything is a gift.

At Christmas time this year, don't forget what matters.