Stuff, treasure of times gone by. Stuff, things I just had to have at one point in time. Stuff, things I paid for and cannot let go of - even if I didn't remember I had them until I moved. Does having all that extra stuff make any sense to any of you?
I must admit when I review my stuff collection, I often find someone who could use some of it. These things are not damaged junk that should be trashed rather than kept but good things that I simply don't use or have room for. Maybe you have stuff too. Maybe you have an abundance of stuff that you don't even know you have. Maybe you have stuff on a shelf that is making you put good stuff on the floor instead of the shelf.
One thing that I have noticed is that at some point in time, from moving stuff from place to place to cleaning around it, is that some things have lost their usefulness to me. I notice that sometimes, it has not only lost it's usefulness but it has become a burden of sorts. I also noticed that rather than do something about it, it is easier to ignore it.
It has made me think that this stuff that was once a treasure, that once had great value was not being used at all. Now answer this, is that any way to treat a treasure? Why do we do that?
It was just at a time when two of the girls recently moved out and I was able to have a full office again in one of the rooms. The one daughter still at home recently set up her bedroom with teenage furnishings and a new bed. I had a queen size mattress and box springs that were less than a year old and were really never used but a couple times. In fact, we had just bought all new sheets, pillows, and a comforter.
I called a church in the city that I had done services for in the past and told the pastor what I had and wanted to find a home for. It seemed a shame to just let it sit in a corner somewhere.
It was the week before Christmas when he called back and said there was a lady near his church that could use a mattress. I loaded up my truck, picked him up and went to her house. She was battling bronchitis and looked like she had not gotten any rest in a long time. She was very excited to get the matress. She slept in the dining room just off the living room and told me she had not had a mattress for over a year. She had been sleeping on a bunch of blankets on the floor. She made sure the kids had beds but had not been able to make a bed for herself. She even had a futon frame that fit the mattress perfectly. The almost new mattress and all the new covers brought tears to her eyes and mine too. That little story reminds me of a part in the movie, "The Blind Side". When Sandra Bullock brought Michael home to stay with them and showed him his room. He stared at the room causing her to ask if he had never had a room. He replied, no, he had never had a bed. We may never know what someone standing right beside us may be needing or has never had for that matter.
I realized how much excess stuff we may have and while there are real, nice people doing their very best but have very little. I realize how our old treasures can still be treasures for other people. These treasures still have much life to be lived.
That was years ago and the treasures still become stuff but now I listen for people looking for things or in need of things. I could just drop them at a store that sells used things and some things do end up there, but I try hard to find homes for them. I was blessed by them once and now they can bless another. Things I consider not so nice go to the recycling center. I make it a rule to never give someone something I would not want for myself. Junk is junk, not treasure.
My point is that most of us have treasures that have become stuff that can once again be treasures. What better thing can we do with them than to dust them off and start listening for a new home for them? We had been blessed when we got them, why not let another be blessed? Maybe we can call it treasure recycling. We take them through the process of treasure to stuff and recycle them back to treasure.
Let loving others open your heart and ears to listen for someone who needs something you have. They could be a person at the next table in the diner, a coworker, or a couple in a store staring at a stroller. There are people all around us in everyday places that have need of our treasures turned stuff. Someone may be praying right now for a toaster, TV or mattress and God might just use you to answer that prayer. I can tell you that in such situations, I was blessed when I got the treasure and I was blessed when it found a new home.
Looking out for one another and each other's needs is a great expression of loving. It doesn't even have to be stuff. It could be the giving of your skills and talents. How cool would it be that you noticed your neighbors mailbox was falling apart and you got a couple pieces of wood and built him a new one. How about you blowing snow or cutting the neighbor's grass? How about helping to paint a room or pick up some flowers and plant them for a person who is house bound. I am sure you have hundreds of ideas on how to randomly bless another person, feel free to share them with us if you like.
Bless others with your stuff, talents, skills and gifts and I promise you will be blessed in the process. Being loving blesses the one who receives the love as well as the one who gives the love. Loving others encourages us to see them blessed.
Love Somebody. Everybody. Think about stuff.