The Purge
Yes, I do realize this sounds like the title of the next Hunger Games movie, but it’s not. It’s the current state of my life. In preparing for the Race, we are required to fundraise, and last month I had a massive garage sale. I had friends donate all kinds of stuff for me to sell. So much stuff in fact, that I could barely get in my apartment! It was quite a sight. I was overwhelmed with gratefulness at the generosity of my friends. When sale day came, I was again blessed with many people showing up at my place super early one Saturday morning. They helped me empty my apartment of all this stuff and moved it out front. I was expecting to take in maybe $200…. Image my surprise when we made $650!! It was a miracle, and everyone’s time and donations made a huge difference. The amount we raised isn’t really the point though. The point is that, in the process of preparing for this sale, I went through all my stuff and realized that I had so much of it. I had been moving around a lot of stuff that I never used, or things that I once used but haven’t touched in years. I kept hanging on to things thinking one day I would have a house to put stuff in and I may use this stuff again one day. As I went thought all of it, I got rid of duplicate items and things I could really live without. Over the many days it took me to sort everything, I kept thinking most of the world lives with maybe 5% of what I have here. They make do with what they have. Why do I need 3 sets of mixing bowls? The term American Excess took on a whole new meaning as I realized I had inadvertently taken part of this. I started to call this process The Purge. I began to get excited to get rid of as much of it as I could. Let me tell you this feels GREAT!!! I of course am still keeping my couches and bed until I leave in December but over the next few months I will be continuing the purge. It feels great to clean out what I have, and to learn to live with less stuff, and make do with what I am left with. This whole process is refreshing and exciting. I don’t know when I became one of those American’s who has so much stuff I don’t know what to do with it all, but I do know, it’s not who I want to be. I want to be focused on relationships not on collecting things. I want to serve God and others. I want to love people. I want to help. Maybe my excessive amount of things has hindered that? Maybe I have gotten too comfortable with all of my things? Maybe all of the stuff in my life is distracting me from my true purpose? One thing is for sure, The Purge has really been eye opening to me, and I intent to keep purging. I am not sure how long or how painful this process will be, but I do know its end point is me leaving on this epic journey called The World Race.
As I gear up for a second yard sale, who knows what the Lord will bless me with, but for now, I know I am on the right track! He is directing my steps and my time. Time and life are a fleeting thing. I am going to make the most of it. 🙂
