Today was another successful day at work. I did the usual...attend staff meeting, write up the council report, prepare for Children's Church, plan for the upcoming High School Retreat, and Mystery Dinner, but then there was the atypical event; a run to the dump.
For all you youth workers out there you can understand this, but it seems that the youth room becomes dumping grounds for anything and everything. I was talking with a fellow DCE (several actually) here in Alaska and they all have the same problem. People have un-used items so they donate them to the youth and feel good about it.
Don't get me wrong the concept is good but as you can see in the pictures below we have become home to two huge television sets. You know the old kind that take up half the living room? Those kind.
The youth room also had two bathroom stalls (the remains anyways), Pastor's old office door, two broken love seats, 4 kitchen chairs that used to have wheels but they (the wheels) have disappeared, a box of old phones, two white boards covered in permanent marker, a fax machine, and other odd and ends.
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| Collection of stuff |
Justin and I loaded up as much as would fit in his pick-up truck. While we were able dispose of some larger items the largest television set we were unable to move so it remains along with some other items.
Going to the landfill is a process let me tell you. In Worthington I live literally a mile east of the Nobles County landfill. Some of our nearby property is often subject to fly away papers, dumping of electronics, and furniture for those who cannot seem to make it another 500 yards to the landfill gate.
Justin and I drove to the Anchorage landfill. I followed behind him in my car since both the cab of his pick-up and the bed of the truck were full. Justin went first at the landfill and I followed behind him in my car. He was stopped by the gate lady who informed Justin that we needed to tie down our items or we would be subject to a $30 fine. So we both turned around. As we were leaving we heard over the PA system that same lady sternly informing a man with a trailer that he had to secure is items off the property of the fine would still be enforced. So Justin and I drove OFF the property and tied down our items. (This makes a whole lot of sense since we already had traveled without items tied down on the interstate from the church to the landfill and had made it no problem...but we went with it.
We came back in this time I went with my car first (to pay) and had Justin follow. The lady told me that we would need to purchase two orange vests and then she proceeded to tell me that we were subject to $30 fine since we did not leave the property. I told her we had left the premises and just got back to which she said that the other vehicle in my party had not done so. I then realized that she thought Justin's pick-up and the random trailer guy behind us were all together. After I explained that we were not together she said "Oh..well then you don't need vests because you are just a pick-up, not a trailer." Talk about confusion.
Anyways, Justin and I had much fun unloading all the items. Justin threw each phone individually in order to get maximum entertainment. Honestly it was a lot of fun tossing huge items into the bin.
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| One phone at a time :) |
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| Swinging the phone Olympic "Hammer Throw" style |
This whole process made me realize, humans are strange - most want to 'hang on' to everything, their old clothes, old doors, old television sets, old notes, old acquaintances. When it comes to cleaning things out I am what my mom would call "a chucker". I chuck out old things that I wont need. I know some people in my life who are the exact opposite.They like to hold onto everything. While keeping things can come in handy once and a while most of the time these items just sit around collecting dust and cobwebs.
Ever heard the phrase "Let Go, and Let God"? Some only believe this saying is about worrying and that we must let go of our concerns and let God take care of them. Yes, that is very true, but believe it or not, this is only the surface...there is more.
To be better servants of God and to allow Him to work more freely in our lives, we must let go of ALL of our stuff. These things that we hold on so tightly to, are also holding onto us...and holding us back from God.
The first thing that we hold on to is our identity! Our identity is everything about us...our possessions, our loves, our accomplishments, our experiences, our attitudes, our past, our hopes and plans, etc. All of these make up who we are. It has taken us a lifetime to fit into this world. We have achieved much, marked our territory and let the world know what we believe in. It is our identity, ego and persona, how we see ourselves...that we hold onto. Whether Wonder Woman, Truth-Seeker, Adventurer, Brainiac, Tower of Strength, Rebel or Compassionate Soul...our identity is the most important thing we have. Our identity gives us purpose and direction. But it is also our identity that may prevent God from using us. For many of us...we come first...before God. When we place ourselves before God, then our ultimate focus deals with what we want not what God might want to use us for. We need to find our identity in Christ in order to fulling live out what God is calling us to do.
“For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority.” - Colossians 2:9-10
We are complete in Christ, the one who has all power and authority! God has a special purpose for all and understanding that purpose sometimes means that we have to retrain our mind as to who Christ says that we are, instead of who we claim to be and what the world has to say about us.
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