April 8 ~ 1 Timothy 6:6-8
And religion does make your life rich, by making you content with what you have. We didn't bring anything into this world, and we won't take anything with us when we leave. So we should be satisfied just to have food and clothes.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
I recently watched an episode of The History Channel’s “American Pickers,” about two men from Iowa who trek across the country in search of “one man’s junk” that can be recycled and restored and turned into another man’s “treasure.” On the episode I viewed, the men visited a gentleman who has an incredible collection that includes a turn-of-the-century wood rim bicycle and a high-wheeler from the 1880’s. At every turn, the two men asked the owner, “How much for this?” The man’s standard reply was, “Oh… a couple thousand.” In other words, he didn’t want to sell! He even remarked, “I am going to have to buy a really big casket to take all this with me!”
The truth is, we won’t take any of our “stuff” with us when we die, and a lot of it isn’t adding much to our lives in the present! I know, I know… I have closets full of things I don’t need, too. But sadly, for a lot of us, we fill our lives with things we don’t even want out of some deep-seated idea that we can gain satisfaction with “stuff!” The truth is that what we really need is more of JESUS!
Many people are trying to fill a void with things, people, trips and activities, drugs, alcohol and more… and there is never enough. If you just had one more car, video game or pair of shoes… that would be enough. If you could just go to Europe or take a cruise one more time, your life would be complete. Have you ever seen the Kohler bath commercial where the Italian grandma is dying, and she is saying that her life is complete… she accomplished and experienced everything she could possibly want – until the door opens to show a beautiful woman running her hands through the water that fills a bath tub in a spa-like setting. The grandma utters a curse word and dies, regretting that this was the one thing she missed.
What are you missing? If we truly search our hearts, I think most of us would find we are missing more of Jesus. We are missing a deeper sense of trust, a stronger faith, a more intimate relationship with our heavenly Father. I recently commented to my mom that if I spent adequate time praying over the people and concerns on my prayer list these days, I would be in prayer all day… and then we both laughed. We both realized the absurdity of what I had just said, because this obviously is not the priority in my life it should be. See, I’ve let “things” get in the way of spending time with God, and I suspect you may have, too. I could give up a couple of mindless television shows per day to pray. I could walk an extra loop on my exercise route and talk to God a little longer. Instead of surfing the Internet shopping for my next purchase, I could be covering someone in prayer who has deep needs… or finding out what God wants me to do with the next few hours/minutes/days of my life.
We need to realize what is really important. It’s okay to have nice things… to live full lives and go places and do things. But it is not okay to give these first place in our lives. Priorities matter… GOD matters. We can’t take it with us when we die… and we wouldn’t want to anyway. Where are your priorities? What are your treasures?
Leland's Cafe. (2010). The History Channel website. Retrieved 3:33, April 6, 2010, from http://www.history.com/shows/american-pickers/episodes/american-pickers-episodes#slide-2.
©2010 Debbie Robus
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