Σπαταλάω describes living in luxury, excessive indulgence, and sensual pleasure without restraint. The term carries negative moral connotations—not merely enjoying good things but living for pleasure, comfort, and self-gratification. Paul uses it to describe a widow who lives for pleasure, saying she is 'dead even while she lives' (1 Timothy 5:6). James warns the rich who have lived luxuriously on earth while withholding wages from workers (James 5:5). The word suggests a life devoted to comfort and gratification rather than godliness and service, spoiling one's capacity for spiritual vitality.