Many of us would agree with psychologist Patricia Dalton, who says that rampant consumerism, once confined to the holidays, has become a year-round affliction. She observes unhappy people trying to fill the emptiness of their lives by irresponsible spending and then consulting psychologists like her to figure out what has gone wrong. She says: ‘We seem to have forgotten the warning that everything you buy owns you.’ To pay for all their junk, people now work so hard that they’re ruining their marriages, their families, and their health. No wonder many of us feel so spiritually empty. It’s time to remember those timeless words of Jesus: ‘Your life does not consist in the abundance of things you possess.’

The root of our discontent is our spiritual emptiness. But peace with God brings peace with ourselves.