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| an old picture of Zoe clinging to what actually matters, our friends' dog, Daisy |
A few weeks ago I had a really interesting experience with
Zoe. It was bedtime and she was obviously quite tired, so I decided to carry
her to her bed (which I don't do as often now that she's not a baby anymore).
As I was carrying her downstairs, she wrapped her arms tightly around my neck,
nestled her head onto my shoulder, and I held her tightly in a warm embrace. It
was a precious, special moment.
But then suddenly she realized that she had not grabbed the
stuffed animals she was planning to sleep with that night, so we turned around
to go find where she had last put them. The tragedy of the story is that as Zoe
continued to fill her arms with an immeasurable number of animals, she was
suddenly unable to cling tightly to me in a sweet father-daughter embrace. We
had lost the cuddly connection we had once shared, and I had now become no more
than her preferred mode of transportation from one place to the next.
Hoarding our possessions (our money, things, clothes, time,
energy, and skillsets), can often force us to sacrifice more important things.
We cannot serve two masters. We can't serve God and money. Like Zoe in the
story, clinging so tightly to the things we own can distract us from more
significant things or people that are right under our noses and can rob of us
of the life God intends for us.
During this season of thanksgiving and gratitude, may we
learn to loosen our grip on the things we own and the endless desire for more.
May we be more aware of the things in life that really matter. May we recognize
that the God of the universe is desperate to hold us close, shower us with
blessing, and remind us of our God-given value. And during this frantic season
of American consumerism, where a meal of the thanksgiving quickly gives way to
Black Friday shopping, may we not let anything distract us from our first
love...the God who loves us dear and holds us near.
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