GBS Week 7: My Superficial Sweet 16

My Super Sweet 16 is a reality series documenting the outrageous sixteenth birthday parties of wealthy teenagers. The fascination with the show lies in the lavish, permissive, self-indulgent event, on which thousands of dollars were spent. Temper tantrums from the spoiled birthday girl punctuate the show in a way that leaves viewers laughing at the girl’s ridiculousness. A meltdown because the new Mercedes is presented at the wrong time,  the little sisters party dress makes her look hotter than the birthday girl, and no one came out of the party tent to see her make her grand entrance in a helicopter.

If you had unlimited resources, which kind of party would you choose?

-         A Fantasy-Land party, where you make a grand entrance dressed in a showgirl costume, riding on an elephant, with a complete carnival and the gift of a Range Rover.

-         A Diamonds Are Forever party, where you’re carried in on the shoulder of two hunky men, and given a 7-carat diamond ring and a $100,000 Mercedes sedan.

-         The Fairy Tale party, in a castle tent, where you arrive in a Cinderella carriage, have knights as your bodyguards, see a fireworks show in your honor, and receive the gift of a new BMW.

My Super Sweet 16 is an entertaining—and sometimes sickening—look at the tantrums and meltdowns that some very rich girls have in the process of receiving a party that’s lavish beyond imagination. These girls are bent on creating for themselves what could be called the most fake world of all—a world where they end up getting everything they want, and go to extremes to appear popular—but usually it just ends up feeling superficial.

Here are three types of superficiality, as shown in these exact quotes from girls on the show:

I Want It All: This is the girl who grasps for everything—from jewels to clothes to cars—and declares, “I’m used to getting everything I want, and if I don’t…look out.”

It’s All About Me: This girl thrives when the world revolves around her: “I love being the center of attention, when everything’s focused on me.”

How Do I Rate? This girl obsesses about comparing herself to others: “I have to stand out among everyone else, and I have to be the hottest thing at my party.”

Each of these girls got what she wanted—the gifts, the attention, and the status. So, why weren’t they satisfied? Because each of them was trying to find happiness in something superficial.

     There are three kinds of behavior that lead to discontentment: Coveting things, comparing yourself to others, and being jealous of attention. If you want to become real in a fake world, you will need to work on replacing these types of discontentment with super-satisfaction. Then you will be a genuine person—and more likable too!

1. Choose Contentment Over Coveting

What kinds of things do you find yourself wishing for? When have you become so preoccupied with what you don’t have that you stop enjoying what you do have?

“But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish, harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.” -1 Timothy 6:6-10

Imagine that you must choose between a million dollars and contentment. Which would you choose, and why?

Wanting to get rich is a trap. We get out of the trap by combining godliness with contentment—seeking to be more like God, and more thankful to God.

2. Stop Comparing And Start Rejoicing

Comparison leads to one of two things: jealousy or pride.

“Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.” –Romans 12:15

Which part of this verse is harder for you—to be happy with other when they are happy, or to be sad with others when they are sad? How does rejoicing with those rejoice cure jealousy? How can it cure pride?

Rejoicing with those who rejoice takes the focus off of ourselves and helps increase the happiness of others by adding our rejoicing to theirs. In order to rejoice with those who are rejoicing, we have to be purely thinking about others and not ourselves. The minute we start comparing, we open ourselves to jealousy, and we can’t rejoice with them!

Rejoicing with those who rejoice can also overcome certain types of pride. It is impossible to indulge in the pride of entitlement and rejoice with those who rejoice at the same time. We can’t genuinely celebrate someone else’s good news if we’re feeling pridefully superior.

3. It’s Not All About Me…It’s All About You!

I’m sure you’ve heard the story of Joseph and the many colored coat before, but let’s just do a quick recap:

Joseph was the youngest son in a large family. He had always been favored by his father, and received a gift no one else had—a coat of many colors. His brothers were so jealous, that they got rid of Joseph by selling him into slavery. (Check out Genesis 37 for the rest of the story).

Have you ever envied someone who was the center of attention?

If we were able to talk to Joseph’s brothers, they might tell us they just wanted to feel special. They just wanted their father’s attention and approval. They said, “It’s all about me.” The cure for “It’s all about me” is to turn it into “It’s all about you”. 1 Corin. 13:4 tells us love does not envy—it is not jealous. In fact, love cancels out envy. Envy is all about me; love is all about you.

Are there any situations in your life in which loving others would work better for you than making sure you’re loved?

This week we’ve looked at how we are sometimes discontent, and how we overcome that to be content.

Pray: God, help me to be satisfied with what you have given me this week. Show me how much I am blessed, and how I can use my abilities to bless others. Help me to take the focus off of myself, and to put it on You by loving others. Amen.

~Emilee