As we are packing up and getting ready to move across the country, we have decided we will be getting a 26 ft truck and filling it and whatever doesn’t fit, gets left behind. The process of looking at stuff and going through things and deciding what to take and what to leave behind has been fueling and empowering. We have looked at some of our things that we have been dragging around for the past 10 years and realize that they have no use or purpose or use anymore but we have kept them around for sentimental sake or simply because we haven’t taken the effort to get rid of them. This move has freed us up to get a moment of clarity and intentionally determine what we want to take with us and what we want to leave behind. It is great to see old stuff get new owners and broken and outdated items get the gift of being trashed.
I think a trap of transitions in life is not knowing and then not actively leaving things behind that need to be left behind. Think about the high school graduate who still hangs out at the high school for the three years after graduation, the elderly person whose house is packed with stuff to the point that no one can move around her house, or the family who still has the kid swing up in their backyard during their last high schooler’s graduation party. Transitions can be a great time to see clearly and reset your life to be ready for the next season. Maybe one of the most important things to leave behind during transition is old voices, old ways of doing things, and old patterns. When you transition from middle to high school you could choose to leave old names and old experiences behind or if you don’t they will follow you. I believe when we leave the old, unhealthy things behind we set ourselves up to live the next season with power and strength. This is also true about what Jesus offers each of us as people. In Rom 6:6 it says that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ and that sin no longer has power over us. I love that Truth, but sometimes I don’t claim and live in it. If you haven’t met Jesus yet, I want to let you know that the power sin, the bad things that you have done doesn’t have to determine your future and what you think about yourself. When you transition into a life with Christ, you get to leave behind the power of sin in your life and become brand new. It is an amazing thing. If you are a Christian, I invite you to take a look at your life and make sure you haven’t let sin have an unauthorized voice in your life. If you have leave it behind NOW!
As we finish leaving things behind here in Lexington, we have a couple of things that we are still finding new homes for: Cocoa our 6 yr old dog (yes I will miss him), a piano, washer*, dryer*, treadmill*, couch*/love seat*, large TV, and maybe even our riding lawn mower** among other things. Let Kris or I know if you know of someone who might be interested in any of these items.
*we are selling these items to help fund the move