Originally published Saturday, 21 December 2013.
Piles of paper. And donations. And old memories.
That was my day yesterday. I spend its entirety going through old bins and boxes, consolidating what stayed, and weeding out what went away. I had absolutely no idea that I had accumulated that much...what's the word...stuff. Stuff that, just as quickly purchased or created, would rapidly be sent to the garbage or the thrift store.
And I began to wonder this morning: Do I treat God that way?
Do I treat realities of how He has worked in my life with a quick, nostalgic sigh and a wave of my hand? Do I negate how deeply He has desired to teach me spiritually throughout the years by forgetting His discipline, and returning to old ways again? Do I not even care to spend time soaking in His goodness, the beauty and magnitude of Who He Is?
I seriously hope my answer to all of these questions is No.
I hope your answer is No, too. Because our stuff, our memories, our sweet little painted pictures from preschool are but metaphors for how sweetly and magnificently God has poured Himself into our lives.
We are instructed in the Word to store up treasures in Heaven (Matthew 6:20), and not on earth--because earth is fleeting, and we are but dust. We are vapor (Isaiah 40:7). Nothing tangible we create as humans stands once eternity comes into full view.
So what are we storing up, especially this Christmas? Soak in the words of the psalmist in chapter 16:
5 Lord, you alone are my inheritance, my cup of blessing.
You guard all that is mine.
6 The land you have given me is a pleasant land.
What a wonderful inheritance!
7 I will bless the Lord who guides me;
even at night my heart instructs me.
8 I know the Lord is always with me.
I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me.
It seems to me that how we value our earthly memories and tokens should be but a glimpse of how we value who God is, what He has taught us and what salvation means for us.
Nothing compares.
What are some of your favorite memories? How does God's goodness and inheritance compare?
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