The Suitcase

I am not a traveler.
Whenever I go anywhere, I pack much more than I need.
I never understood how people could pack so little and do just fine.
My husband and oldest daughter are efficient packers.

My husband has learned the knack of folding things in a certain way to maximize space.
My daughter, who was an athlete in high school and college, can get a week’s worth of clothes in a duffel bag.
I have yet to learn the art of packing.

Some people just travel light…bringing the bare necessities.
Others like the comfort of having things close by…just in case.

We had good friends to our home this past weekend.
One particular family, with four young boys, is quite familiar with our home.
As they walked in the door, I glanced down at their third son.
He walked in the door with a suitcase behind him.

It looked as if he intended to stay…which would have been fine with us!
It was a Buzz Lightyear suitcase with a few of his favorite things.
According to him…the necessities…the things he couldn’t leave home without!

As the evening progressed, I noticed him walking around with a blanket over his head.
In his imagination, it could be a superhero cape.
It also kept him warm by the fire.
He put his suitcase in a special place in our family room…a place he usually puts his shoes.

When asked what was inside his suitcase…he said his blanket, his Bible, his favorite toy.
He came equipped!

Why are you like a stranger in the land, like a traveler who stays only a night?
(Jeremiah 14:8)

That little boy had it right.
Travel light.
Bring only your favorite things with you.
Keep your Bible close by.

Then He said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” And He told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’ Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and then I will store my grain and my goods. And I’ll say to myself, You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink, and be merry.’ “
But God said to him, “You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?”
This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God. (Luke 12:15-21)

What arrogance to think that accumulating more…was his only goal.
What foolishness to put all his energy into the WHERE…instead of the WHAT FOR!

What does God want me to do with all that He has given to me?
What does God want me to hold loosely?
What does God want me to cling to?

Can you imagine carrying around a suitcase filled with your possessions?
Can you imagine the sheer burden of that?
Carrying it upstairs…in and out of the car…lugging it wherever you go.

Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised. (Job 1:21)

Two men…two very different perspectives.

The rich man in the parable was not grateful.
His only worry was how he could add more to what he already had.
He wondered where he could store his abundance?
He never thought about how he could be a good steward of what he already had.
The word he said over and over was: MY

Job, in humility, knew that all he had came from the Lord.
He knew that any blessings he enjoyed were right from the Lord’s hand.
Job held his possessions loosely.
They never really belonged to him anyway.
The word Job used over and over was: LORD

The rich man in the parable, did not consider God.
Job praised God for all things.

Oh, to be like the little boy that came to my house with his suitcase.
Just a few things…my Bible…a blanket to keep me warm…a favorite thing to keep nearby.

Ready to stay.
Ready to go.
Holding on to earth’s treasures loosely.
Being rich towards God…praising Him in want or abundance.
Being a good steward of what He has entrusted to me.