We are moving house after 16 years living in the same place. That’s the longest we’ve ever lived in one house!
The process of moving brings up some interesting things…
For one, we’ve had to go through the two large garages at the end of our garden and decide what we should keep and what we should take to the scrap yard
In total, we ended up taking 5 car loads of scrap!
Most of the stuff was mine! I’m realising that I’m probably a bit of a hoarder
I had to trawl through over 20 years of stuff…
Boxes full of old journals (keeping them). Folders full of old workshop session plans from my work with young people (discarded them). Old musical instruments that are now either broken or rotting (discarded). A large box of business books that have been partly eaten through by rats and part mouldy (discarded). Files of old sermon notes (discarded). Floppy disks with art work I can no longer access (discarded). Old technology I used to make music with that’s now obsolete (discarded mostly)
So much stuff that’s no longer needed, useful, or in good condition
This all begs the question…is this what I have to show for? Is this my life?
These piles of rubbish??!
My lifework stored up in damaged boxes?
Does this really represent 20+ years of my life or is there another way to evaluate this?
And then it cuts deeper still…
What is actually of value?
Do these various objects store memories?
What is worth keeping hold of? What do we need to let go of?
We store these things because we think that one day we might need them, but then forget what we have actually got stored up…
Jesus said,
‘Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat then and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be’ – Matthew 6:19-21
Just Passing Through...
Moving home can also serve to remind us that this world is not our permanent dwelling place…
Our eternal home is the Kingdom of Heaven and when we pass from this life we cannot take our earthly treasures with us, as is written;
‘For we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world.’
consider the futility of all those ancient Egyptian tombs filled with treasures the Pharoahs believed would journey with them to the afterlife…
The message – store your treasures in heaven where there’s no moths, rust or thieves…
But how do we do that?
I wrote a short while ago on Rewards we Can Receive in Heaven, primarily focusing on ‘The Five Crowns…’
There are in fact quite a few ways we can store up treasure in heaven, Jesus talks about keeping ‘Three Secrets’ in Matthew 6 – that goes some way to adding to our heavenly account!
Sudden Departure
Imagine you had to make a sudden departure…
Perhaps war has broken out, or a new dictator has arisen or your life is being threatened, and you have to leave your house immediately – not knowing where you are heading…
You need to travel light, so can only take a few things with you…
You may never be reaquainted with the items you leave behind again…
What would you carry with you?
While thinking about that, also consider this…
What will you take with you to heaven?
