I’ve been home from Africa for nearly two months. I probably should be “over” my trip now, back to my old self. Living the life I left.
But I’m not the same. I don’t ever want to be the same again. I don’t really know where God is leading me (and my family), but it’s far away from the person I was two months ago.
In Africa I witnessed the simplicity of pure hearts. People who had nothing and everything. I looked at my own life, in my own heart and I saw poverty.
It was a terrible discovery.
I returned to my easy American life, so weighted down with stuff, closets bursting with clothes and toys, walls and shelves crowded with dozens and dozens of things. 2,000 square feet crammed with enough home decor to decorate several houses, a hobby turned into a distraction of accumulating more stuff.
Stuff that cluttered my home, but worse, cluttered my heart.
I held tightly to these objects, things I bought to fill empty places. Things don’t fill empty places, they just hide them.
For the first time, I understood the rich young ruler’s choice in Mark 10: Jesus said, “There’s one thing left: Go sell whatever you own and give it to the poor. All your wealth will then be heavenly wealth. And come follow me.” The man’s face clouded over. This was the last thing he expected to hear, and he walked off with a heavy heart. He was holding on tight to a lot of things, and not about to let go.
I looked at my own life, in my own heart and I saw poverty.
It was a beautiful discovery.
I decided to let go of the meaningless things that clutter my home and my heart:
(layer one)
I’m discovering that my materialism is like an onion…layer one has been removed, but I think I’m just getting started on clearing out the stuff (in my home and heart).
I thought I had stuff, it turns out it had me.
I want Christ. He is much greater than all the riches of the world. He fills empty places.
And cleans up cluttered hearts.
