I dislike losing my keys, so very much. Nothing is more frustrating than the need to be somewhere RIGHT NOW and not have this small and simple item. We can have a hundred-thousand-dollar car, which is a giant paperweight without a small fob. However, some things in life are good to lose. We can lose weight as we seek to be healthy. We can pay off debt and seek to live free of heavy financial burdens. We can also remove the stuff cluttering our lives to give us more space and a less hurried life. Yet, all these things are a trade-off. Something must go away, for there is something new and life-giving to come into or from our lives.
Paul writes; “But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ.” (Philippians 3:7-8) Remember, you cannot serve God and your stuff. Jesus has made this clear on more than one occasion. Jesus said; “And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it” and “For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?” (Mt 10:38–39; Mt 16:25–26a) We cannot have it all, nor should we try. The abundant life so many seek, may be found in our loss so that we can fully follow and know Jesus as Lord and have deep relationship with others. We can choose to love our things, a foolish move by the way, because they will never be able to love us back. We need relationships with God and people, not stuff. What are we willing to surrender for a real relationship with Jesus and others?