Satisfaction

Recently someone posted a link to this blog where a former New Age guru who has turned Christian talked about all the evil things you can find in non-Christian belief systems. The post was predictably fearmongering, stupid, and culturally insensitive but she did make one valid point.

Well, kind of. She never exactly came out and STATED this because as someone who used to make money off New Age merch and now is trying to make money off Christianity, she didn't exactly want to say the truth.

People spend money on things and expect those things to make them feel spiritually whole. However, spending money isn't how feeling whole works. Now this isn't going to be a post where I rant against money. Money is a tool we have to work with. But it's just that. It's just a tool. Spending a lot of it isn't going to help you feel better. It may help to get some of the resources you can use in ways that will get you there, but most people never take those steps.

I'm not going to pretend to be enlightened (by any means) and I'm not going to say I have all the answers to feeling spiritually sound. If you read the blog (hi, 7 faithful readers!) then you know I have my very dark days. I also, however, have very good moments. I have had moments when I felt very complete.

These moments have always centered around creativity. Finishing a project. Even finishing part of it. Completing a task. Solving a problem in a way that used my creative skills. In these moments, I have felt very spiritually whole. I have felt very good.

Now, if my depression is bad, this won't work, but that is a time of chemical imbalance so honestly nothing is working. However, one of the ways I can pull myself out of the funk of depression is to look at things other people have created. That usually gives me the same feeling of soul satisfaction. It restores my faith in what we can accomplish as a species.

So next time you're feeling empty, instead of buying something, make something. If you don't need that something, donate it to someone who does. Allow that feeling of creativity to sustain you. If you have a problem in your life, instead of buying something new to fix it, take inventory of what you already have that could solve the problem for you. You save money AND get to use your skills. Don't feed the system. Feed your soul.