Traveling Lightly

At my sister's party, one dear friend gave her a beautiful print from an artist in our church. He also gave her a powerful scripture & music CD. Neither of these items were new - but he said once he's had something for a year he feels it's fine to pass it along. So he said the gift was from him and the artist. SWEET! I like that concept. ALOT!!

I've thought about the freedom this man possesses. He is one of the giants of the faith in my book. I hold him in highest esteem, and even though he possesses very little in the earthly sense, he is soooo RICH in the Spirit. He packs a big whack of the Spirit of God wherever he goes - carrying the most precious possession in great abundance, and freely giving it out wherever he travels. He spends hours walking and praying and meditating on the Word of God. So he's really, really rich in those things that matter. I am enriched when I spend time with him.

So, I wanna learn from him cause He's imitating Christ! Travelling lightly. Unencumbered, but rich in the things that will last into eternity and benefit everyone He meets. It certainly doesn't mean I have to get rid of everything, but I sure can't let things possess me. I've inherited some of that "post war" mentality - being a first generation Canadian whose parents went through the war and had to make do with very very little. I have that tendency to want to keep things "just in case". Not a good idea if I'm wanting to downsize and simplify.

Working this out on a practical level is a scarey, but intriguing concept. My life is somewhat complicated, simply because of the fact that I need so many things just to get me through a day. Wheelchairs, medical supplies, car lifts, hand controls, adapted housing...on and on the list seems to go. But even despite all those "necessities", I still have waaay too much junk that I drag along with me. What's with that? I barely made a dent in the huge pile the other day when I worked through my correspondance box and started in the cassettes.

So I'm going to ask Jesus to help me to simplify. To be generous, not to hoard, to give freely because I've received so much. And to tell you the truth it scares me to ask this of Him. He takes me at my word when I ask Him to deal with areas in my life. I shouldn't really be surprised at the ruthless pruning my life has been undergoing. And now I'm asking for more? Sheesh...but there's freedom at the end of it. I know it will be worth it if I'll just cooperate. Sooner rather than later I hope.