“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” (Hebrews 12:1)

Seems like it wasn’t that long ago I was writing about walking weighted – walking while wearing a weighted vest. And now I am thinking about God’s direction to throw things off as I run this life race in order that I might travel light, unencumbered by what is unnecessary. Those “things” would be anything that would hinder me or hold me back from running this life race well – this race that God has marked out for me to run.

So why do I hold onto what I don’t need, those things that weigh me down unnecessarily? Is it just coincidence that the current chapter in a book my friends and I are reading is titled “Simplicity”? This chapter is challenging each of us to clear away the clutter in our homes and in our lives, thereby simplifying our lives and making room for what is truly important.

As I sort through some of my possessions, I realize that for me this might come down to an issue of trust. Is my trust in all the “stuff” that I own, or is my trust in God? I worry that I might need a particular item at some point in the future, so I am reluctant to part with said item. After all, it will save me the cost of buying a new one of whatever it is when the need arises. So the problem seems to be that I’m afraid I won’t have what I need when I need it and I don’t trust my Heavenly Father to provide for me. God’s Word clearly says otherwise –

“And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.” (2 Corinthians 9:8)

So, do I believe Him? That’s a lot of “all”s – four to be exact. If I believe this promise from God’s word, then I can let go of all the stuff I’m hanging onto and carrying around with me “just in case” I might need it someday. Although, in my defense, where clothes are concerned, I firmly believe that everything comes back into style if I will just hang onto it long enough. (even bellbottoms) That being said, maybe I should take my Heavenly Father at His word. Jesus was pretty clear about this issue of worry, provision and trust. He said –

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. . . . 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? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies 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, O you of little faith? . . . 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 don’t need to spend my time, my days and my nights consumed with worry. If I truly trust God to provide for me in the future, maybe I can part with the overabundance of possessions that fill my spaces and weigh me down in the present as I travel through this life. Although I don’t currently have any storage units, I pass by plenty of these places in my daily travels. They always remind me of the guy in the Bible parable who built the “bigger barns” so he had a place to store all the excess that he had accumulated. Having done this, he was satisfied BUT the very same day this happened –

“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 12:20-21)

Now that’s a wakeup call for sure! I need to ask myself – what am I collecting? and where am I storing it? Jesus has some guidance for me, and for anyone of us, in this area. He said –

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust 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)

Isn’t that the truth? These “earthly treasures” really don’t hold much value, nothing that lasts anyway. They say a new car depreciates drastically the minute you drive it off the lot. Clothes go “out of style” or out of current fashion very quickly because clothing companies want you not to be satisfied with what you have BUT to continue endlessly updating your wardrobe. The only thing that gets outdated faster than fashion is electronics. Phones, computers and such are outdated and obsolete before anyone even has the time to figure out how to operate their current version. (how many “windows” are there now?)

I’m glad heaven has a secure storage space, a place big enough to accommodate whatever treasures I wish to accumulate. Rather than holding onto temporal treasures, which as it turns out, aren’t really treasures at all because they end up having no lasting value, I want to trust that God is keeping secure for me any treasures I have waiting for me in heaven. I agree with Paul who said this –

“I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him for that day.” (2 Timothy 1:12)

God is able to guard my heavenly treasure (which probably doesn’t need a lot of guarding because there are no moths, no rust and no thieves) and keep it safe for me until “that day” when I arrive home. And I bet I know just where my Heavenly Father is storing all my heavenly stuff. Jesus gives me this clue –

“In My Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with Me that you also may be where I am.” (John 14:2-3)

So Jesus is preparing a room for me – a space that can hold secure all my treasure, and in a happy twist – it is Jesus who IS my treasure! His presence is the reward that can’t be stolen or corrupted or taken away from me by anyone or anything. I am assured of this in Romans –

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? . . . No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us (me and you too, dear readers) from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:35-39)

Jesus said that I get to be where He is – with Him – for eternity! I don’t need to store up stuff here. I won’t need it. I have an imperishable treasure waiting for me in heaven. I am free to let go of all the things that clutter my life, distract me or weigh me down here on earth. My Heavenly Father provides all I need for today and for eternity.

“Your mercies are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:23)

“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9)

sincerely, Grace Day