Photo credit: Free-images.com
“It’s amazing, Molly. The love inside, you take it with you.” Sam (played by the late Patrick Swayze) said this to his beloved Molly (Demi Moore) near the end of the 1990 movie “Ghost.” In this powerful scene, Sam speaks these words to Molly while being summoned to heaven after he was murdered.
We all know the parable of the rich man who decided to build bigger barns to accommodate all his stuff. He thought that, since he had accumulated so much wealth, he could just relax for the rest of his life. God called him a ‘fool’ and reminded him that he could die that night and then all of his belongings would be given away (Luke 12:13-21). The unasked question became, “Without all your belongings, what will you have to show for yourself? What will you have left to give to Me?”
We know that love – how well we love God by loving our neighbor – is more important than everything else. The challenge with this, in our consumer society, is as much about how much time and energy we put into accumulating our stuff and then congratulating ourselves for becoming ‘successful,’ as the man in the parable did, as about how much we have. It’s about how we may look down on those who are less ‘successful’ than we are. It’s also about how we may put people into categories and treat them according to our judgment of them.
The only thing we take with us is the love within our hearts and the love we’ve shown to others – all others. We’ve heard that many times. So maybe we can look at it from a different angle.
I can ask myself:
-How much time do I give to God in prayer compared to the time I spend shopping? Maybe I can take a moment to thank God for the means to make that purchase.
-How much do I spend on others compared to the amount I spend on myself? Maybe every time I buy an article of clothing for myself I can give one away.
-It’s easy to converse with people who agree with my point of view. How willing am I to listen and try to understand someone who will vote differently from how I will – without condemning them for taking a different stand?
-How do I treat my coworker whose lifestyle is different from mine? Maybe I need to remind myself that God loves that person as much as He loves me.
If we say that love is what’s most important and proclaim that our material goods don’t really matter, then let’s take a moment to examine if what we proclaim is consistent with how we live – and make changes where we’re falling short.
“Thus it will be for the one who stores up treasure for himself but is not rich in what matters to God.” – Luke 12:21
“Lord, let nothing take up space in my heart that cannot be given to You.”
Thank you for reading my reflection. © 2024 Gina Bedell Comments are always welcome!
Please share this with your friends by clicking on one of the icons below. Blogspot doesn’t have a ‘subscribe’ feature and so I appreciate your help in sharing my reflections. Thanks!
If you or someone you know would like to receive these writings directly, please email me at ginabedell1@gmail.com and I will add you to my ‘BCC’ email list.
You can also find my posts on Facebook!
P.S.
Pray for peace at home, in Ukraine, Russia, the Middle East, and around the world. Donate to a cause that tugs at your heart. Take care of those around you; take care of our planet. Pray for the families around the globe whose lives have been torn apart by war and natural disasters.
No comments:
Post a Comment