The Needs of a Christian

I've been struggling lately (ok, for a long time) with what, precisely, are the needs of a Christian. 

Because on the one hand, Christians are humans.  We have a need for air, food, clothing, etc, just like non-Christians.  And Matthew 6:8 seems to suggest that Jesus knows that we have needs - and so does the Father! 

But then there's all those verses about not needing food or drink once you have the Bread of Life or Living Water.  There's Luke 10, where Jesus sends the disciples out with absolutely nothing.  There's the definite New Testament sense that a person literally has no needs if he is following Christ. 

So what am I to do with the fact that I need more income than I currently have?  Or that I need somebody to let me lay my head on their shoulder or just hug me for a few minutes?  Or that I need somebody to listen to me say every crazy scared mixed up thing that's in my head and then tell me that even though it's not okay, I am okay. 

Every time I try to articulate those needs, the voice in my head says, "Why is it always all about you?  You need to get it together because you are a Christian and you have no needs - Jesus is all you need.  There are other people who have much bigger problems and needs than you, and some of them aren't even Christian." 

On my better days, I know that's not a healthy approach, but still...what's the right balance here?

Anybody? 

Conspiracy Theories

In an article at Christianity Today, Christopher Hays explores "The Folly of Answering Fools," and basically says that when we get sucked into stupid debates with anti-Christians, we end up giving their arguments more credence, and more airtime, than they would get otherwise.  As the old saying goes, "Never wrestle with a pig.  You get dirty, and the pig likes it."  Or maybe, Hays seems to suggest, we just need to learn to engage differently - throw people off-track, if you will:

Another thought experiment: Imagine if a journalist called a Christian leader to ask about Brown's latest Rome-based conspiracy theory, and the leader said, "That's a pretty tame theory. The Bible's own conspiracy theory is much wilder. It says that God is plotting to overthrow every worldly power and establish his own rule once and for all. And the entire Christian church is in on it."

Hahaha.  This cracked me up.  I would love to say this to someone sometime.  Bottom line: Don't take people who don't know what they're talking about too seriously.  Truth will always win.