None of your stuff is coming with you to eternity
1 Timothy 6:6-8
6 But, godliness with contentment is great gain.
7 For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.
8 But, if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.
Anyone who has ever moved has had this thought: “Wow, I can’t believe I have this much stuff!” The reason this is especially clear is because you, in some manner or another, will have to pick up and move every single thing you have. Every box or armful means one more trip, one more trip up the stairs, one more trip down the hall; it makes for a lot of trips.
One good thing about moving is it also causes us to evaluate what we really need. We start to see what is really important and what is just ‘stuff.’ The important things we keep, the stuff we get rid of. It’s a great process like that.
The Bible teaches us that in light of eternity, and our possessions are really just stuff. Paul notes in 1 Timothy Chapter 6 that we didn’t bring anything into the world. And you know what? We’re not taking anything out of the world either. Once we realize that none of our possessions will last into eternity, we have a new freedom.
If none of our stuff is eternal, then we don’t have to treat it like it is so important. In light of eternity, it becomes insignificant if we have the newest or the nicest things.
And let’s go even further. If we don’t get to keep any of our possessions, it’s a whole lot easier to be generous with them, isn’t it? Just like it is easy to give away an old piece of furniture you were getting rid of anyway, it becomes so much easier to give away the things we think “belong” to us because, well, God’s getting rid of them when Christ returns anyway. When we live within the light of eternity, generosity just makes sense.
Today’s Generosity Challenge:
With your family, take a real inventory of everything in your house you haven’t used in the last 18 months. Everything – clothes, furniture, toys, even (or especially) including everything in storage. Now, call the paper and announce a yard sale. That’s right; sell it all – be courageous – sell all of it. Then take all the proceeds and first pay off any debt you may have, starting with your credit cards. Then, call you favorite charity and donate everything that didn’t sell. If by some chance you still have a few dollars left, drop that in the offering box at your church. Be sure to write down how freeing this experience was at http://GenerousLife.net/Day25.
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