I don't call myself a hoarder. Others might, but I don't. I merely hang on to items that could be used at a later date, maybe. Take cottage cheese and large yogurt containers for example. Several stacks of these wonderful, plastic containers are neatly arranged under my kitchen sink. And, of course, I also have their lids.
Why? Well, I never knows when I might want to send leftovers home with a family member. When given the word, a Greek, honey yogurt container leaps to the rescue, lid in hand, and the day is saved.
With my wonderful collection, I will also be ready if my daughter, an elementary teacher, sends out a distress call. "Mom, Help! I don't have enough plastic containers for my class painting project. Do you have any? Even lids will help out."
Laughing silently, I imagine myself yelling "Charge!" as I dash into the classroom armed with a couple dozen containers. Mom saves the day, and a swarm of second graders cheer. With all the heroics out of my system, I finally say, "You know I do. How many do you need?"
How many of anything do I really need? I am in the process of rearranging my office area. In the shelving around my laptop I have tablets of every size, shape, and stage of use. There are seven 8 1/2 x 11 spiral notebooks (one from my oldest son's high school days, and a couple that are starting to rust), three steno pads (one has only five pages), four yellow legal pads, six white pads, two inches of small note pads and a little drawer full of post-it notes of various sizes. I didn't even mention the pack of ledger pages that my father-in-law had, a folder full of assorted decorative printer paper, and a folder containing six blue pee-chees.
Stepping on William Shakespeare's toes for a moment, to keep or not to keep, that is the question. One thing is for certain, though. If any of the grandkids need paper for anything, and I do mean anything, I have it all beautifully arranged on my shelves. Need a plastic lid or container? Help yourself.
From soup to nuts, or more appropriately plastic containers to writing paper, I am truly ready for anything life throws at me all because I don't throw very much away. Sadly, if I don't deal with most of it, my children will have all of it when I'm gone. Lucky them.
Spiritually, we as people also have a tendency to hoard. We hand onto negative thoughts and emotions that we should lay at the foot of the cross. We stick them in back closets of our mind instead of confessing them. Then we shut the door thinking that someday we might need to haul them out to remind ourselves what someone did to us. But somehow they continues to grow, accumulate, and putrefy until they contaminate not only us, but also those around us. It can reach the point where so much sin and darkness clutters our hearts, souls, and minds that there isn't much room left for God to work.
Notice, I said, "There isn't much room."? One of the many things I love about God is his spirit can always find room. He can find the tiniest places to seep into, minute cracks in our closed doors and erected walls. Then be begins his work. How he does it, I don't know, but he does it. He softens hard hearts to restore relationships. He cracks solid walls to allow light in. He overturns rebelliousness to create new, Godly desires. He helps us clean house, and then gifts us with a housewarming fruit basket. I don't even have to pay for his heavy reconstruction/housekeeping services. They're free. So is the fruit basket.
“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law” (vv. 22–23).
- Galatians 5:22–23
Lord, no matter what I once was, I have been washed, I have been sanctified, and I have been justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God! 1 Corinthians 6:11
We can't afford to be sin hoarders.
Jan, Licorice Kitty and family
(The little ones are learning to pounce and jump. They are so funny.)
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