We’re almost done unpacking. Just 10 days after moving into our new home in Cedar Springs, we’ve just about got the unpacking done. Notice I said “almost done.”
We’re trying to find a place for everything that we brought with us. But the closets are a bit smaller, there aren’t quite as many cupboards in the kitchen, and there’s one less bedroom and one less bathroom than our previous home. That means we still have quite a few boxes that have been moved to the garage. These are the we’ll-hang-on-to-this-for-awhile-to-see-if-we-need-it things.
After 19 years of marriage and three kids, we’ve accumulated quite a bit of stuff. And do you know what I’ve found? I don’t need or use much of the stuff I so carefully packed up and moved with me.
So I got to thinking, “How much stuff do I have packed away in my heart and mind that I don’t really need? How many unkind words do I continue to keep packed away in case I need to pull them out? How many painful memories do I keep packaged up just in case I need to feel sorry for myself? How many mistakes from my past do I keep pulling out and packing up again?”
- Throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception (Ephesians 4:22).
- Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us (Hebrews 12:1).
- I’m not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made. But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. Friends, don’t get me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this, but I’ve got my eye on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward — to Jesus. I’m off and running, and I’m not turning back (Philippians 3:12-14).
It feels really good to get rid of the old stuff. I’m enjoying not having so much cluttering up my life, so I think I’m going to make it a regular practice to clean out the unused stuff.
Do you have any stuff you need to clear out today? I promise you: It’ll feel so wonderful when you do!
September 9, 2009 at 12:29 pm
I have been going thru that same experience. Moving it all made my muscles sore but once it was in the trash (because I decided I did not need it) my muscles began to heal. I am feeling pretty good these days, because Jesus cares enough about me to make me get rid of all that stuff I did not need. “Just in case I move again”. It was not easy there was alot to throw away. I was suprised. Isnt God wonderful to care so much. I am speaking spritually of course even though I really am moving again. Good comparison! Thanks for making my brain think.