About the grip of material things:

Romans 1: 25 They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator--who is forever praised. Amen. (NIV)

Have you ever had to do without an electric appliance? Have you ever had to do without your electricity, or your car, or your television, or your radio? If we tell the truth, things can grip us. Material things have no soul, no heart, and no life of any kind. However, material things can grip us as if these things had some kind of invisible hand reaching out to grasp our heart and mind. We live in a gadget age when every kind of gadget and gizmo can fascinate our soul. We live in a technological age but we often seem to serve material things rather than making material things serve us. We live in a technological age when we seem to worship things rather than worshiping God the creator. As marvelous and astounding as we can make our created things and gadgets, there is no more marvelous and astounding creation than a new-born child, or a real sunset over the ocean, or the snow capped peaks of His mountains. There is no more marvelous and wonderful part of life than Him and His love for each of us. Because He is so marvelous and wonderful He deserves our worship and our praise.