I've recently found myself in a peculiar situation. I had spent a good amount of time and effort decorating the home I had been living in, and was then allowed to sit back and enjoy the fruits of my labor. While some of you may have chosen a different décor, I was very happy with how everything looked. But as a little bit of time had passed, I was finding myself far less impressed with all of it.
Don't get me wrong, my tastes had not changed. I didn't suddenly feel as though I needed to start over from scratch with an entirely different décor. I simply began to realize that as nice as it was, it brought me no true sense of happiness whatsoever.
During the preceding months, I had been giving a great deal of thought to the complete and total emptiness of "The American Dream." My generation was taught that our main goal in life was to work hard, buy a home, fill that home with nice things, raise a family, and if we found that we had accumulated too many nice things to fit within our homes, we should then buy a bigger, nicer home.
Within all of this, I couldn't ignore a profound truth that had been rising up within me like a tidal wave. It was all meaningless. None of these "things" were adding anything to my life or the enjoyment of it. In fact, I was experiencing quite the opposite. In reality, it had actually been taking away from my quality of life due to the stress of having to keep it all nice, clean, and safe.
As I considered these things, the following verses continued to ring through my mind:
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." Matthew 6:19-21
This explained where I was, and why everything began to feel so empty. My heart was wrapped up in my treasure, and my treasure was here on earth.
Feeling completely overwhelmed by the weight of trying to maintain this status-quo, I finally prayed, asking God to please release me from all of it. Within 48 hours, somebody offered to buy my home. They wanted to be in it within 30 days, giving me very little time to decide what to do with all of my "treasures."
My final decision was to simply give all of it away to those who were in need of it. I do not say this to pat myself on the back or to give any of you a false belief that I'm some incredibly generous man of God. It simply was the only path that made any sense to me. It was the only path that gave me peace.
I took what I felt as though I needed, and moved these belongings into my sister's home, who along with her husband had graciously offered to let me stay with them until I feel a true sense of where God might lead me next. Since arriving here, I've all but disconnected myself from the massive media onslaught of television and internet. I'm praying, studying, and asking God for His guidance on where the next step may lead. Then sense of peace and calm I now feel can't truly be described in words.
I write these things for one reason alone: To show you a living example of the truth of scripture. There are countless bible verses that speak of how the pursuit of God will bring more peace and comfort into our lives than anything else we'll ever know, and how the pursuit of material possession will bring nothing but emptiness, stress, discouragement, and disappointment. I'm not suggesting that all of you need to give away all of your earthly possession in order to truly seek God. I only know that, for me personally, it had to be done. And having done so, I'm truly experiencing the truth found in these words:
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Phillipians 4:6-7
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?
“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." Matthew 6:25-34 I have no idea where all of this will lead. I don't expect that I'll do everything perfectly or make all of the right decisions. All that I know for certain is that, for now, I'm exactly where God wants me to be, and nothing could possibly be more valuable.
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