A relative of mine had a real problem accumulating things. When she passed on, her house and garage were filled with things. There was enough furniture, crates of collectibles, and antiques to fill a moving van. Before she passed on, she heard that, in fact, she could take it with her.
“Hire someone with a portable car crusher.”, some smart-alec told her. “They can truck it to your house, put everything you own into the car crusher, and compress it into a casket-sized cube. You can watch them to be sure no one steals anything. Then, buy another lot from the cemetery, and have the cube buried next to you. If you want to take your Mercedes along, have it compressed, and buy another lot.”
The advice was not taken. In the ensuing fifteen years, several thousand dollars was spent on keeping many of the items in storage. The car-crusher could have taken care of everything for less than a thousand.
Interestingly, before she passed away, thieves broke into her house and stole some of her more valuable items. That could happen to any of us.
So, what should we do with what we have? Jesus’s advice is always right. “Sell what you have, give the money to the poor, and come, follow Me.” As we get older, we should be less attracted by things and find it easier to follow those Operating Instructions.
