Dealing with Stuff

    A couple of my good friends and family members are in the process of moving or transitioning to new homes. I thought back to when I was younger and how many times I moved during and after college. Moving then amounted to getting someone with a truck to take my few boxes of belongings to the next location. (I always laughed when I saw this bumper sticker on a person's truck, "Yes, I own a truck. No, I will not help you move!)

    Moving, as an "actual" adult, becomes much more complicated and there are many more emotional strings attached. The home may have many memories, not unlike a scrapbook, where you picture events or family members around the dining table or chatting at the kitchen counter. Moving, as an adult, usually means cancelling a lot of accounts and sending new addresses to many businesses that need to locate you later for processing bills for utilities, health insurance, etc. The list of "change of address" forms and emails feel endless. 

    Then, there is the stuff, as you get older, you gather stuff. Some stuff is emotional (baby items, school memorabilia, etc.) and other stuff is essential (kitchen pots and pans, beds, clothing, etc.), but then there's the stuff that you have just had for a long time and don't know why you can't part with it. These items may be gifts, especially from those loved ones no longer alive, or from colleagues or events that were significant like weddings. (I still have my wedding dress, that no longer fits me nor will ever be needed again. It's out of style and I have no children. But it moves with me, everywhere I go.)

    The moves that my friends and family are going through are to retire, downsize, and move to locations with less yard and home to take care of, in most cases. When we are younger, we gather "stuff," and as we get older, we shed "stuff." We realize that stuff keeps us anchored to emotions, places, and even people that, in some cases, we would rather let go of, but we can't make the mental decision to let go of it. We may, intellectually, know we could move about more freely and less encumbered without it, but our emotions bind us to it. 

    The Bible reminds us in Matthew 6:21, "For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." We cling to things sometimes and clamp our hands around them, which leaves us unable to grasp the next opportunity that the Lord provides. Jesus had nothing of much value as he walked the earth and wandered his, approximately, 33 years with his family and friends. Jesus said in Matthew 8:20, "Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head." 

    Jesus was on a journey for his Father God. He couldn't get caught up with things of the earth that would keep him from his mission to train up disciples and teach the truth. Imagine if Jesus had to buy and sell homes and belongings every time God sent him to another village. Matthew 9:35 might have sounded much different, "Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness." 

    That scripture (Matthew 9:35) might have sounded more like this, "Jesus waited until his new home was established before he moved on, many died of their illnesses before he was able to arrive and others were destined to hell for eternity as they hadn't had a chance to hear the gospel, due to his delay." That is a bit extreme, I know, but you get the idea. How many people miss out on hearing the good news because we are caught up in our "stuff," dealing with it, buying it, selling it, moving it, storing it, etc. 

    Let's loose the hold that earthly business and belongings have on us and gain an eternal perspective on our "necessities," before they tie us down, and keep us from sharing the good news of hope and heaven that so many of our fellow sojourners need today.

1 Peter 1:18-19 For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.