Though this happened a few years back it comes to my mind from time to time. Now I don’t know why, but I seem to do this every time. I wait until the last minute to pack for a trip. It was a Sunday afternoon and we had just arrived home from a great worship service at Plymouth Heights. A few chores awaited me along with staff meetings scheduled that evening before service to cover some items before I left. We had lunch to eat, calls to make and of course my Nazarene Nap! But I’ve still got to pack! My travel itinerary said that I had to be in Columbus the next day for an 11:00 AM flight to Dallas and then to Sao Paulo Brazil and I still hadn’t packed yet! Oh I knew what I needed to take with me, and I knew exactly where it was. I had traveled many times before and had taken too much with me and I didn’t want to make that same mistake again. In fact, did you know that the bible has a lot to say about traveling? Listen to Hebrews 12:1, Wherefore seeing we are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin that doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us” Now that speaks volumes about preparation before traveling doesn’t it? I really believe that many struggle today because they have too much packed. So tell me Tim, What happens when we pack too much? Well I’m glad you asked because I can think of four things rather quickly.
First of all, packing more than you need makes you tired! When I began running cross country in High School I didn’t have those little fancy running shoes everyone else had, I started out in a pair of Converse high top basketball shoes! Needless to say that I felt twenty pounds lighter and had a lot more energy when I broke down and bought me a pair of real running shoes. Many of God’s children are spiritually worn out because they are packing around too many unnecessary things. How about you? Are you carrying too much? Are you weighted down? Why not take the scriptures advice and lay it aside? Secondly I notice that when we pack too much it hinders our joy! I have witnessed my fair share of travel catastrophes as a well-meaning traveler finds himself or herself loaded down with so much baggage that they miss the beauty of the trip. I want you to know that living for the Lord is a wonderful way to live and I want to enjoy the trip as well as look forward to the destination! I don’t want to miss a single opportunity to worship Him, a single opportunity to behold his handiwork because I’m packing around too much stuff! Have you every been guilty? I mean, you’ve looked up from your spiritual armloads just in time to see the credits roll by as God’s blessings pass out of sight. I don’t want to miss a thing how about you?
Thirdly, we can pack so much it causes unnecessary worry. No wonder Jesus said, “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” If your mind is on earthly treasure you can be sure your heart is not on heavenly things. A young man had an accident while driving his car that was quite spectacular. When the policeman arrived he found the young man standing near his car mumbling. As the officer approached he overheard the young man saying, ’Oh, my BMW, oh my BMW, oh my BMW’. Looking at the young man the policeman said, "Are you nuts, look at the condition of your arm, your left are is all mangled’. The young man looked down and said, ’Oh my Rolex, oh my Rolex, oh my Rolex! I like the story of True Riches I heard once. It seems a tax officer asked an old man to declare his wealth. The Old man declared his riches like this: A mansion in heaven, Everlasting life, Peace that passes all understanding, Joy unspeakable, Devine love that never fails, A crown of life, A faithful wife, Healthy, Happy & obedient children, and Loyal friends. True riches indeed! Lastly I notice that Packing more than you need slows you down! That is really what the writer is referring to when he described a runner competing in a race. When you are in a competition you want to do your best. What he says to us is that if there is sin in your life it will slow you down for sure. By the way, while on that trip to Brazil I found myself in a shopping mall in the city of Campinas with a friend by the name Pastor Aguiar Valvassour and we each took turns getting on one of those weight machines that stores so thoughtfully place in strategic public locations to cause one embarrassment and discomfort. I was pleasantly surprised to see the scale register 102 when I stepped onto it. My exuberance was short lived however when my friend Aguiar reminded me the weight was in kilos and not in pounds. “You do the math!” I will tell you this; I firmly believe that God knows our spiritual weight exactly. He knows what we weigh and what we are truly carrying that we do not need! Speaking of Airports, More thoroughly than any scanner that the TSA has ever envisioned, God is able to see everything we have packed. He knows what we need and what we don’t! So let me ask you, are you traveling light?
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