de-clutter

Deuteronomy 10

Why do we get so caught up in stuff? Most of our lives are consumed with gathering and acquiring stuff. You learn this acutely when you move. We thought we could just put our stuff in a truck and move it down to NC. Who knew we had so much stuff? We just kept bringing things out of that house. And then we got to the attic. I'm surprised our house didn't fall over with the amount of stuff we had in there.

When we were trying to get our house on the market HGTV told us we needed to de-clutter. So we took a bunch of our furniture and clothes and stuff and put it in storage. What we found is that we liked it better that way. There was more room. We didn't feel as closed in. And we never missed the stuff we had put into storage. At our new house in NC we are trying to stay clutter free. That is easier said than done. Since we moved in we have come up with a list of stuff we really "need." Why? We still have some of our junk in storage and our garage is full.

There is a passage in Deuteronomy that gives a new perspective to the stuff we accumulate. Moses is giving his final instructions before he dies and turns the leadership of Israel over to Joshua. In Chapter 10 Moses is recounting the giving of the tablets and the instructions for the ark of the covenant and the duties of the Levites. Verses 8 & 9 indicate that the Levites were to be in charge of the ark and the duties associated with ministering before the Lord and because of this they would not receive a portion of land as an inheritance when the Israelites went into the promised land. Verse 9 explains the reason, "the Lord is their inheritance." Here is the nation of Israel standing on the edge of the promised land and those who have been dedicated to the service of the Lord are given this encouragement, "You won't get an inheritance, the act of serving God will be your inheritance." Better than houses or lands or cattle or herds or servants or stuff is the fact that you have been chosen to minister before the Lord.

(Does everyone know where I am headed?)

1 Peter chapter 2 says that we are "a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." Verse nine says that we have been chosen by God to serve as priests. Old Testament priests' inheritance was the honor of serving the living God. New Testament priests' inheritance is the honor of serving the living God. What stuff gets in the way of us living out our inheritance? Whatever it is... de-clutter. Rest in the all-sufficient God who led the Israelites into the promised land. De-clutter. You will like your spiritual house better that way.