As I was counting my large piles of Scrooge-McDuck style cash this afternoon, I realized that swimming in money is rather painful. You wouldn’t know it from the show, but you can’t actually dive into a pile of gold coins and do the back stroke… deceptive I know. It seems I can’t get all my information from cartoons, which might require a substantial change in strategic thinking.
Anyhow, while I was clogging my snorkel in dolla-bills, I came across this article about this lady that is selling all her possessions on ebay. First of all, she’s crazy. I don’t think you could get me to sell all my stuff. And if I did… it would definitely be to some museum that was being established to show how I great I was. But then I remembered that ridiculous story in the Bible where this guy Jesus told this rich guy that he should go and sell all his stuff and follow him in order to get into heaven.
It says when the rich guy heard this that he was sad. I’m pretty sad about it too. I love my stuff. If Jesus walked up to me and told me to sell all my stuff… I’d probably walk away sad too.
Here’s where I start nit picking though. The story says she’s selling all but her pets and a few photos. I understand the pet thing, that’s like selling your children to some people. But the pictures really interest me. What are they pictures of? What’s so important about the pictures that she sells all her stuff except those? Seriously, she’s a few snapshots short of being on her way to heaven (yeah, I understand she might not be doing it to follow Jesus, but just work with me here for a second) and she’s holding on to them. Are they of her kids? Maybe her pets (which would be ironic considering she’s keeping them too) or maybe a vacation? Or maybe her school photo from 3rd grade?
The thing is, for me, even if I could manage to sell my sweet tv and my truck, there’s going to be something that I can’t part with. Like my wedding ring, or a tiny picture of a banana that I’ve kept in my wallet for years. Or the photos of my daughter at age 5 seconds. And I guess this is what Jesus is getting the young rich guy to figure out. He can keep all the laws, but there’s just some things he can’t give up.
So the lady keeps her photos, I keep my wallet banana, and the rich young ruler walks away sad.
So I’m thinking about that this week. And I’m thinking about how I might not have my stuff, it might have me. And I’m thinking about camels squeezing through sewing equipment. And I’m thinking that if I can just give up my wallet banana I might be free of something and get a yoke that is light. But what if I can’t? I’m hoping that Jesus will pry it out of my cold dead hands.