There’s nothing as precious as a new baby. All newborns share a commonality. They are born without a clue, helpless as well as dependent upon their father and mother for everything.
A newborn is born with nothing. They come with empty hands and tight clenched hands. If they are able to open their fists they’ll grasp the fingers of a person or a rattle. One of the very first skills they acquire as babies is holding onto their bottle, blanket or toy, which provide security for their parents.
As we get older our hands get more efficient in holding onto objects. Without them, we can’t perform daily tasks like eating and dressing, driving as well as writing.
Through our lives, we are firmly clinging to our most prized items. We are glued to houses, cars, and even jobs. A lot of people are seeking something that they can hold on to as a source of security. They believe that making money with their hands is the best way to achieve physical security. I’ve seen the bumper sticker which said, “He who has the most toys has the most fun wins.”
Jesus stated during His time on earththat “For what benefit will it bring to a person when you gain the whole world, but loses his soul? What will a person offer in exchange to save his soul?” (Matthew 16:26 NKJ)
A missionary Jim Elliot, who was killed within the jungles in Ecuador has once made the comment “He isn’t a fool who will give away what he is unable to keep to get the things he can’t lose.” Yet again we’ve witnessed how possessions are destroyed within a matter of seconds due to destructive storms and tornadoes.
The most valuable possessions we have are our family and children. We would like to stay connected to them for as longer as possible. It’s difficult for us to say goodbye once they leave home to begin their own lives or the elderly relatives of ours are nearing the death the road to their final days. However much we cherish life death will eventually come to everyone.
Someone has told you, “You can’t take it with you.” As one minister jokingly said, “You don’t see a hearse pulling a UHaul.” This is true about the material world. When we die the hands of our children are empty as they were before we were first born.
Jesus told us “Do not set aside for yourself treasures on the earth, where moths and rust ruin and where thieves break in and take and take away for yourself treasures from the heavens” (Matthew 6:19, NKJ).
Anne Graham Lotz writes, “I think about the treasures we’ll find in heaven to prove our contribution and witness on earth, if there are any? It is said that we are not able to take anything from heaven, we are able to! We can take someone else!”
All of us have one thing that we share. There is an eternal soul within each human being, our part that connects with God. We have the ability to trust God’s unchanging hand, which means we don’t have to go through eternity empty handed.
-” Jan White has compiled a collection of her columnists in her book “Everyday Faith for Daily Life.”
The article ColumN: What should we actually hold onto? appeared first on The Andalusia Star-News.
