Gain by losing

Anything that you “have” will soon have you. Anything you, “own” will soon own you. Anything you “control” will soon control you.

Knowing this to be true, should we run screaming from all possessions? NO! God loves to entrust to us, resources skills, and groups to belong to. He just wants them to be a blessing to us and not a snare. To enable us to minister to others and bring all the glory to him. In short, to steward our gifts not own them for our own ends.

One day, Moses was out in the desert talking to a bush, (Not his usual habit). The voice from the bush asked him what was in his hand and he replied that it was his rod. The voice told him to throw it down. Which he did. It turned into a snake. The voice told him to pick it up by its’ tail. (Don’t try this with any snakes you find in the desert). It turned back into a rod but now it was always referred to as, “the rod of God!”

Abraham gave up his son, who then became heir to all the promises of God and a founding father of the people of Israel. The widow gave up her last meal and found food for the rest of the famine. Samuel’s mom gave him to God and received a full family and her son kept the people focussed on God for years.

What do you “have?” God asks. Health, money, family, honor, cars, jobs, time, hobbies, skills, etc.? Give them to me.

He takes them, polishes them up, and gives them back for us to steward but now they are his and not ours.

They will no longer bring anxiety over their possible loss. They will no longer try to steal our hearts away from our Lord.

We must put them on the altar freely. If we expect God to tear them out of our hands, He won’t. That would tear up our hands. If we hold all things in an open palm then he can take them and polish them up without hurting us. He can give us even bigger things without damaging us with the burden of them or the lure of them.

It is a little like a spiritual ping-pong game. We hit the ball to him and he gives it back to us then asks us to give it back to him and then gives it back to us. This turns the things and people in our lives into powerful tools to bless others and honor him.

Jesus said, “If anyone loves father or mother or son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.” Matthew 10:37 He that loves comfort more than a cross. He that is all focussed on developing his own life and finding himself rather than following me and finding me. Is not worthy of me.

But remember, “When you give up the grasping struggle, you find the very thing you thought you had lost, and find that you never had it to begin with.”

I am not a fool if I give up what I don’t really have in order to gain what I can never lose.

Lord, help me to see the reality that, “Apart from you” I have no strength, no wisdom, no righteousness, no people, no stuff. It would be all illusion. However, I am not apart from you and you are my all in all and infuse all the things in my life with meaning and beauty.