Baggage

So, We've been moving these past couple of weeks. We (my wife, son, and dog) packed up the life that we had created for ourselves in Pasadena and hauled it all to our new home in Oklahoma City.  This isn't the first time that either one of us have done this.  In college, the Fraternity I belonged to moved every single year that I was an active member.  But this particular move has proven to be harder than some of the past ones.  Perhaps it was because of the relationships that had been developed and the memories that had been made in SoCal, but at this particular moment I am fairly well convinced that the difficulty of this move boils down to one simple fact...we had (and continue to have) a lot of stuff.  I don't say that in a "heylookatuslookhowgreatwearewithallourstuff" kind of way, I say it in a "OHMYGAWDWHEREDIDALLTHISSTUFFCOMEFROM???" kind of way.  I mean seriously, we're young, our kid is young....where did it all come from?

We don't usually perceive stuff to be a problem.  Our society is built upon the premise of the more stuff we have the more "successful" and "happy" we certainly are.  Whether it be clothes, games, toys, tools, or whatever our particular pleasure might be, most of us like to have stuff. But there's a bitter irony to be found in the quest to accumulate higher quantities of (usually) more expensive stuff: We don't usually think about how much stuff we have until it's time to move it.  And that's when stuff turns into something else....baggage.
And please understand the distinction. Stuff exists to be played with, used, and admired.  Baggage exists to be carried, hauled, pushed, and pulled.  Whether it be across the country or across the airport, the more baggage we have the more difficult (and costly) our journey becomes.

And of course the truth of the matter is that we all have stuff that we have accumulated...both within our homes and within our spirits. This is a fundamental reality of the journey of life.  Our stuff, be it physical or metaphorical, represents our life, it is a tangible manifestation of our experiences...both positive and otherwise.  This is why it becomes so difficult to let go of our accumulated possessions.  Everything has an experience, a person, and a memory attached to it, and perhaps within the depths of our heart we are afraid that if we part with that possession...we part with that memory or perhaps even that person.  In the same way, we can struggle to break free from the stuff that accumulates within our hearts, minds, and spirits. Some of the stuff we carry we desperately want to be freed from, emotions like hurt, anger, grief, regret and longing are all natural millstones that we would love to have removed from our neck....but then there are other feelings and emotions that swirl around inside of us that we desperately want to hold on to, this stuff is usually associated with whatever period in our life (either personal or professional) that we classify as our "glory days."  Why would we ever want to let go of those memories, feelings, and the euphoria that comes from recounting the "good old days?"  For the same reason we have got to let go of those negative experiences that continue to haunt us...be it good or ill, these feelings and thoughts kind of meld together and stack on top of each other until there is this weight that has seemingly overnight turned into baggage that we are compelled to haul around as we move from place to place. And what this baggage does is prevent us from experiencing anything new.

Think about it, when we're busy hauling stuff around, how focused are we on our destination?  We're pretty determined aren't we?  It's rare that when we are overloaded with baggage we are content to take the time to browse the shops at the airport or to stop off at the tourist destinations along the highway.  We just want to get there (wherever "there" might be). Jesus said a little something about this reality.  When he met that rich young man (Luke 18) he told him that if he wanted to experience the Kingdom of God, he needed to let go of his stuff.  Why?  I think it's because that it is next to impossible to experience the new unless we are able to part with the old.  The "stuff," the possessions that man carried around represented his life...his "glory days," if you will.  But Jesus offered and continues to offer a different way...and a different glory...one that cannot be experienced until we are willing to no longer allow our possessions and our past to define us.

Just as this was true for that rich man...just as it is true for each and every one of us.  The same is true for the Church.  There perhaps is no other place on the face of the earth were stuff accumulates and becomes sacred faster than in the church.  Oh my goodness to our churches have a lot of stuff.  I remember the week where some folks in my congregation in Pasadena cleaned our our worship closets....took them a whole week, and there is still a lot there. My fellow youth ministers know how quickly stuff accumulates in a youth room.  Every time someone needs to get rid of a couch, the natural instinct is, "hey, let's give it to the youth."  And what do we do?  We graciously take it, and put it next to the 5 other circa 1984 couches that sit in that same room.

And just as physical stuff accumulates quickly...so does emotional stuff.  Our churches fondly remember the "glory days" and the "way we've always done it."  We talk to no end about former pastors or members that are long since gone. We remember that great VBS from years ago or the wonderful potluck dinner that was held once.  Each room within the church is filled with invisible stuff.  And you know what?  It's turned into baggage...and it's crippling us. We lug it from year to year, minister to minister and perhaps even building to building.  The baggage that our churches are carrying are preventing us from enjoying the journey and from experiencing anything new.  We have become that rich young man weeping in grief because we have "many possessions."  In the words of the song from the movie, Frozen, we have got to "let it go."

I am fairly well convinced that it is next to impossible to "Live in Love" until we can free ourselves from the burdens that have accumulated around us and within us.

What stuff are you holding on to? What baggage are you lugging from place to place?  Churches, what invisible stuff exists within your rooms and your DNA?  What do we need to let go of?  How can we seek to lighten to burdens of another?  How can we better share together in the journey of life?

"Come to me you who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest." ~Jesus of Nazareth