Whose Stuff Is It Anyway?

In a sudden burst of organizational fervor, I cleaned out my walk-in closet of ‘stuff’ I was suddenly motivated to part with. This is major because some of it I haven’t used but have been unable to part with for years. My motive was to put order into my hidden life. Hidden because who sees your closet? No one. But God that is. He evidently sees our closets. I had no less than the Almighty Himself say to me earlier this week, “Your outer life is very productive, but your inner life needs some order.” I didn’t have to ask Him “Why, whatever do you mean, Lord?” I knew. Having moved into this apartment several months ago (see blogs below about moving) I still have not unpacked all my boxes. That would tell I can really can live with whatever was in them, yes? In addition to the boxes I had a stash of clothes I-don’t-wear-anymore-but-will-do-something-creative-with one day (I told myself). I had found a website a while back that teaches you how to weave rugs out of old t-shirts and fabric from clothes you don’t wear anymore but want to keep in your life. Wonderful. I wouldn’t have to say goodbye or abandon my old now-has-a-hole-in-it but beautifully colored blouse, or the dress that had so many memories connected to it. I could weave them into a rug and remember each one as I viewed their colors in the rug. So I had a collection of odds and end clothing I was surely going to cut into strips one day and weave into said rug. But then, do I need a rug? Not really. Would that rug then become clutter and something else I can’t do away with? What to do?

I heard the Lord whisper, “Whose stuff is it, yours or Mine.” Uh, would ‘ours’ do, Lord? No answer. I got the point. If I tell Him my life is entirely His, wouldn’t that mean the ‘stuff’ too? Guess so. He must have sent an angel to help me because one morning I woke up and before I knew it, it was 2 pm and I had sorted through and made some major emotional decisions and in the hallway near the front door of my apartment was now three giant trash bags of give away stuff. It admittedly took me several day of tripping over them till I finally bit the bullet and decided to actually take them to the give-away store. There was a thrift store not too far from my home, but I wasn’t sure if it wasn’t someone making a lot of money off of other people’s discards as the store always seemed quite busy but had no sign such as Salvation Army or Goodwill. Did I want to contribute to something like that?

I got in my car and headed there, soon realizing I had forgotten my sunglasses. Squinting somewhat painfully in the bright sun, as I pulled into the parking, I saw a humble sign that said the proceeds went to support Viet Nam Vets. Well, then. I can do that. A patriotic warmth spread through me as I suddenly found myself feeling good about giving away my 25 year old bed spread with the matching ruffled pillow shams and the drapes that I loved but haven’t matched anything in 15 years, and the dress with the memories. It was for America and the men who had bravely fought for us, whether I agreed with the war or not. Let bygones be bygones. God is still in America. There were still men in need having been wounded in the effort and my drapes could be of some help to ease their pain.  

As I parked the car and began to unload the bags, I saw there were people coming in and out of the store who were obviously not born in America. I heard several languages as I loaded up a shopping cart with my large plastic bags of stuff. I saw mothers with little kids and teenagers all chattering together at once, fathers trying to keep little kids near them – like I happened on a village square in another country as these people were outside the store not in it. Some were showing off the treasures they had found in the store. A few young mothers, obviously housewives, were speaking Spanish so I don’t know what they said, but I could just picture one of them going home with my bedspread with the ruffled pillow shams and loving them. My heart leaped with unexpected joy as I now thanked God for the pleasure that bedspread had brought to me for many years, of how I had enjoyed it and now He had ordained that it was to go on to bless someone else. 

The sudden realization came to me that all my ‘stuff’ really isn’t my stuff at all.  The Bible says, “The Lord richly supplies us with all things to enjoy” (1 Tim. 6:17). Whatever I’ve had that I'd enjoyed was God’s gift to me. It is all His and while we may enjoy it for a season, it doesn’t diminish the memories we have if we give it away for someone else to enjoy. What freedom! The lady who took my stuff at the donation center seemed genuinely happy to receive it. She blessed me as if I had bestowed something wonderful upon her and I blessed her back. Nice. 

I decided to take a spin through the store to see if there was perhaps a treasure for me before I continued on my journey that day, even though I wished I hadn’t forgotten my sunglasses. And what was I to find? A basket full of sunglasses. I bought two, one for slightly cloudy days and one for bright sunny days like that day. Total cost: $1.50 for the two. I happily got in my car and asked God to bless the people who had previously worn my new sunglasses, the ones He had sovereignly ordained would be there for me on a day when I needed them. Thank you, Lord. You’re so thoughtful.