Stuff + URGENT PRAYER REQUEST

I put a smile on my face and a spring in my step this morning because I was thankful God had given me another day with my family and friends.  Although it was Sunday, we weren't in our "Sunday routine".  Our family usually attends the early service at Fayette First but I was playing a duet with Karon Renfroe today in the traditional service so we went to the late service.  By doing that, we had an extra hour of "get-ready" time and with three females under one roof, we need all the extra time we can get!  My man was working (he is winding down his "7 on") so it was just us girls.  Anna Kate had asked my mother to roll her hair this morning so she was styling a new "doo" and she was adoreable.  We went to Sunday school and then on to worship.  Once we were in the sanctuary, I was abandoned.  Hanna's best friend, Gracie Sullivan, served as an acolyte today so Hanna sat directly behind Gracie with Gracie's mom.  Anna Kate's friend, Lindy Hindman, was the other acolyte and Anna Kate sat directly behind Lindy.  I was two pews back so I could keep an eye on them.  I am so proud of them.  They sat quietly, for the most part, and appeared to be listening.  Makes me think I am doing something right!

The sermon today was on the rich fool from Luke 12:13-21.  Bryan spoke of a little girl that had witnessed her neighbors’ house burn to the ground.  Her neighbor happened to be one of her friends.  Her friend had lost everything.  Clothes, pictures, stuffed animals, furniture.  Everything.  That weighed heavily on the little girl so every night for a couple of weeks following the fire, she would find the things in her room that were "near and dear" to her and stuff them into a duffle bag that she kept right beside her bed in case her house caught on fire.  If she had to make a quick escape, she could grab her duffle bag and be out of the house in no time.

As I sat there and listened to the sermon, I began thinking what I would put in my "duffle bag" that was near and dear to me.  Maybe I wasn't thinking deep enough, but there wasn't a thing I could think of that I had in my house that I couldn't live without.  I would make sure my family was out safe but everything else can be replaced.  I would like to save some pictures and maybe some jewelry and clothes, but the one thing I would cry over would be my Bible.  I have so many notes and comments in it that I would probably fret more over losing that than any piece of furniture or article of clothing I own.

Now I haven't always been this way.  No, I use to think I had to have the best of the best.  The nicest purse and shoes (of course that match), not to mention that wallet and key chain were important to me.  Name mattered to me.  Houses mattered to me.  My vehicle mattered to me.

You see, I was living IN the world.  I was going along with what the world told me I needed to be happy and let me tell you something; it is HARD keeping up with the Jones'!  I would get something new and as soon as the new wore off, I wanted something else new.  I was looking for the "new" to satisfy me.  And it would satisfy me for a week, month or maybe even a year, but when the "new" wore off; I was in search of satisfaction in something else.

God has a way of bringing us to our knees when our "stuff" becomes our God...and my stuff had become my god.  I was more interested in my "stuff" than I was getting to know God.  To be honest, I am surprised He didn't bring me down a long time before He did.  And I can HONESTLY say, I NEVER WANT TO GO BACK TO THAT WAY OF LIVING...NEVER! 

God doesn't mind us having "stuff", as long as our "stuff" doesn't have us!  When we concentrate more on what we drive or where we live or what we wear than we do on getting to know Him that stuff becomes our god.  My man and I are in the planning stages of building a house.  We have our land and house plans and we are about to begin clearing the place where the house is going to be.  But before we did one thing, we prayed for discernment about our house.  You see, we don't want this house to become our god.  If it will take our focus off Jesus, we had rather stay where we are.  We have lived that life of "stuff" and while we THOUGHT we were happy, looking back we were really miserable.  We want what God wants for us.  If it's a bigger house fine, if it's not, fine too.  We want His will, not ours.

Now I am going to switch subjects really quickly because I just got a phone call from a dear friend that is in need of prayer.  Her mother has been on the liver transplant list for quite some time now and she has just received THE CALL from UAB that they have her liver.  She has to be in Birmingham within 3 hours and it is almost a 2 hour drive.  They will prep her and she is tentatively set to begin surgery at 4 am so I am asking you to please, please, please lift this woman up in prayer.  I am not at liberty to give any names but God knows who it is.  I need to run and get face down for this family.  Thank you in advance for joining me in prayer!  Love you all!