lessons from veggie tales

the other day, out of boredom, i watched veggie tales on tv. the story was about madame blueberry and how she was "blue, blue, blue, blue, blue."

madame blueberry was rich and lived in a house high on a tree and had two butlers at her beck and call. despite her wealth, she was still unhappy. she wanted what her neighbors had: better appliances, better tableware, a better house, etc., etc. she thought that buying everything she wanted would make her happy.

on her way to her shopping spree, she saw a girl who was celebrating her birthday with her parents. they only had one slice of apple pie to share among the three of them. and yet she heard the little girl say, "thank you Lord for always being there, and for always hearing my prayer. thank you for my parents and this pie we are to share." despite not having a lot, the little girl was happy and thankful.

while madame blueberry was shopping, she saw a little boy with his father shopping for a toy. the boy wanted the big expensive train but they could only afford a bouncy red ball. he was a little bit disappointed but he smiled at his dad and thanked him for the ball. he said he was looking forward to playing with his new toy once they get home.


madame blueberry and myself realized that no amount of material wealth can make us happy. there will always be another person who has more than what we have. i noticed that the older i get and the more money i get paid, the more expensive my lifestyle has become. but nothing i owned has given me the true happiness that i get when i look at my family and my daughter's beautiful eyes, or when i soak in the presence of the Lord.

as i was watching veggie tales, in my head i had a mental picture of the many things i owned but don't need (some are a complete waste of money). i'm sure i am not alone in this, but many of us seem to have an insatiable appetite for material things. my christmas wishlist is full of things i want to have but don't necessarily need. i saw the ipod shuffle and found it so cute i wanted to buy it even though i don't need it. i want a new big leather bag for work, i want a new pair of shoes...samantalang i just bought a purse and shoes the other day...and yet i want more, more, and more =(. sabi nga ni paul, "new purse and new shoes nanaman???" before i saw that episode of veggie tales, my response would always be, "a girl can never have to many shoes or purses!" =( but that shouldn't be the case.

i pray that the Lord will give me the grace to really learn to appreciate what i have now and not to look for temporary happiness in material things; to consider myself extremely blessed for having so much, to be grateful and thankful for all that i have. i don't want to be materialistic, that's not what the Lord wants me to become. i have to do my best and and be a good steward of all the things that He has given me so far. in matthew 25:29, it says "To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have abundance. But for those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away."

lesson from veggie tales: the secret to happiness is having a thankful heart. a thankful heart, is a happy heart.