Wrapping Paper

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.” (John 15:1-2)

Is it just me, or do we all seem to accumulate stuff at a dizzying pace? For example, every year we buy several rolls of wrapping paper for our Christmas presents, and we always have some left after the season. Then after Christmas, wrapping paper goes on sale for 90% off, so we pick up a few more rolls for next year at such a great price. Then during the year, there are special events such as birthdays where more wrapping paper is purchased to fit the theme of the event. We store all the extra paper we don’t use in the basement closet, and the supply just keeps growing. I have enough wrapping paper to open a small boutique. You have probably heard the line that some guys give to a girl about promising her she would be dripping in jewels and furs and all sorts of lavish riches if she will just be his girl. “Honey, if you marry me, I promise I will buy you the moon!” If you ever actually do buy the moon for her, bring it to me. I can wrap it for you.

Shoestrings are another item that multiplies. You cannot buy just one pair of shoestrings. They package them in sets of two pairs because selling one is too cheap and makes no economic sense for the company. So you use one pair and put the other one away for later, but by the time you need the second pair, you have completely forgotten where you put it, so you buy two more pairs. There are actually twice as many pairs of shoestrings in the Universe as there are pairs of shoes.

Sometimes we need a good purging of the stuff we accumulate. Unfortunately, it usually occurs when we least expect it and outside our control. A good spring cleaning often results in a garage sale or a huge pile at the curb for the trash man, but we have to be prompted to do that, and it is often difficult to motivate ourselves to part with our treasured belongings. I am sure most of us have seen episodes of the “Hoarders” program on TV. I hope no one is that bad, but I would say that virtually everyone reading this would not miss most of the stuff they have, myself toward the top of the list. Look at my office and you will see a mountain of papers and other items that mean something to me but not to anyone else. When I finally go home to the Lord, virtually everything I have will be set out at the curb and find its true meaning as it bio-degrades into dirt.

We can see an object lesson of this in nature. In this part of the country, we get hit at times with ice storms in the winter. It is one thing to get dumped on with a foot of snow, but an inch of ice is far worse. The snow just falls through the trees and lands on the ground. But ice clings to the branches and covers every square inch. The weight of the ice on the branches will then bring them crashing to the ground. It is almost surreal to sit at home at night and listen to the neighborhood creak and groan under the weight of the ice. The slightest wind rocks the limbs and you hear the continual crack and thud of branches hitting the ground. You only hope the bigger ones don’t fall on the house. When the weather finally clears, the sound of chainsaws fills the air as the clean up takes place. The result is not pretty at the time, but a couple of years later, it reaps a reward. The older weaker branches have given way to stronger fruit bearing ones.

Sometimes God has to send a storm in our lives to get us to bear more fruit. Our mission and purpose in life is to reach others with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Our things are a very important part of that process. You cannot reach this culture if you are homeless and destitute. No one will believe that your God can care for them if he is not caring for you. But don’t let your stuff get in the way of your fruit. When the next “storm of life” purges some of the things you think are so indispensable, stop for a moment and thank God for it. The fruit of the next season will make it all worthwhile.