Bunji-wun-gee-fun-gee!

It seems like the only activity in my near future is this: pack, pack, pack...clean, clean, clean...pack, pack, pack. All leading up to the inevitable unpacking. 

So, as I pack, I like to dream of our new place (rental that it may be) and how clever I am going to be with decorating and hospitality and such. Like the toss pillows I want to make for our couch or the curtains I want to buy or the double bed I want to get a good deal on to put in our "guest bedroom". Baahhh...stuff!

If asked, I would not say that I am materialistic. But, as I heard in church this morning, you can love money in two ways--by spending it or by hoarding it. I think that it is easy to see yourself in the first category, quickly jump into the second one, and forget that there may be a third:  giving it. I don't mean that you should give away all of your money. Sometimes, we may have to give up all of our money in a physical sense; however, I think that all of us at all times should be viewing "our money" as what it truly is--God's provision for us--and give it back to Him. I have been thinking a lot about stewardship lately in different aspects of my life--my money, my time, and my body. If I truly believe that God has given me everything that I have and that it is more than I deserve, it shouldn't hurt so much to lose it. Or be such a struggle to submit to His agenda.

Money, entertainment, my wants and desires...all of these things seem to have this power to distract us from what is truly pleasurable--delighting in our Treasure. As Matthew 13:44 says, "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field." I have always loved this verse because of the reckless abandonment of the man. He willingly gave up everything he had because he had found something that truly satisfied!

Think of the things that take you out of the position of abiding in Christ. You say, “Yes, Lord, just a minute—I still have this to do. Yes, I will abide as soon as this is finished, or as soon as this week is over. It will be all right, Lord. I will abide then.” Get moving—begin to abide now. In the initial stages it will be a continual effort to abide, but as you continue, it will become so much a part of your life that you will abide in Him without any conscious effort. Make the determination to abide in Jesus wherever you are now or wherever you may be placed in the future.

I think what Chambers is saying here is that we need to put in the work of laying aside whatever it is in our lives that is drawing us away from Christ. Push forward into an abiding relationship with God, and let that become your first desire, your first instinct, and the first place to which you run.

P.S. Since I obviously cannot be wholly serious ever, here is the reasoning behind the title of this post.