Coming off Jen Hatmaker's book 7 and the Bible study -7- Girls Given Grace did together, my eyes are opened to some big time reality checks.
My family listed and sold our home in a month basically. We moved last weekend from a 4 bedroom, 3 and a half bathroom, one acre, gorgeous pool with hot-tub, and a stuffed to the max storage shed all owned for 11 years. We raised 2 kids there. We buried 2 precious animals we lost there. We have watched our kids suffer sadness and seen them so pumped over whatever at the time. As sugar sweet, sentimental, tears could fall right now, that is hardly something to blog over nor does it have a darn thing to do with coming off the study 7 by Jen Hatmaker.
Realty check 1. We had to first rent a storage unit. That's a problem because we rented a 4 bedroom just up the road.
We needed the storage unit for all of our things that can't fit in our 4 bedroom rental. I reason this with the fact the rental is only 1500 sq feet. So we need to pay $75 per month for the storage room...for the things we need but never use -to the point they can be locked up for a year while we rent. Please.
Reality check 2. My husband asked his good friend, Mike a favor. Mike has land and is great to let my husband keep his horse there. Anyway, we needed room to store stuff that didn't fit in the shed at the rental house nor fit in the 75$ per month storage unit we rented. Mike said, "sure"
Reality check 3. We took TRAILER loads of things we purged to our local SOS. We had an old fridge at the end of our street hoping someone would just take it. They did. We gave another fridge to SOS.
Reality check 4. I have Aberdeen China that was Grandmary's. I have never used any of it. I literally mean never once. I looked on EBay for a value check. It appeared smart to just sell them so I listed on eBay. What is the value when they are valued at $40 per plate but no one buys them? You guessed correct! The value is $0. Ditto for the Waterford crystal. I couldn't give them away.
Reality check 5. I couldn't fit what was in my pantry at home in my new pantry. Come to find out, I had so many cans of pasta sauce, picante sauce, mayo, ketchup, green chilies, bar b que sauce, and more, that I had to use the 4th bedroom which is for ... You guessed it! STORAGE- (not the closet but the entire room is storage for all the things "We need") and make a pantry on the shelves for things that were in my pantry but won't fit in the rental pantry.
Should I go on or just stop here?
What in the world was I ever thinking? I'm embarrassed and I'm ashamed at what a nutcase every commercial, everyone we compare our things we need to, every thing we say we need is all making us. What on earth does Christ have to do to tell and show us this is all meaningless? You know what I need? I need you. I need love. I need to give and share because God loves me to love others. I need Jesus to show me who I am and why I am here. I appreciate my home and my full fridge. I need my family and our crazy fun times. I need my husband's strong arms around me. I need my children to give me grand babies, I need grace and mercy. I do not need crystal or china. I don't need everything half off at hobby lobby. I don't need more than 1 coat. What a raucous to fall for this crazy train. I just jumped off. I get it - I wish I knew how many people I could have poured into had I not "needed" all the things I have in storage, a barn, and a storage room.
“Sell your possessions and give to those in need. This will store up treasure for you in heaven! And the purses of heaven never get old or develop holes. Your treasure will be safe; no thief can steal it and no moth can destroy it. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be. (Luke 12:33, 34 NLT)
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