So much stuff

When my Dad passed away two years ago, my brother and I made the decision to sell our childhood home. That meant that we had to go through the house room by room and sort out five decades of accumulated stuff. The house was small and not cluttered. And my parents weren’t hoarders. But I was amazed at how long it took us to manage the contents. More than once, I heard myself telling someone “so much stuff”. What about you? Do you have an excess of things tucked in hiding places around your house?

We live in a world of rampant consumerism where excess sells. And we are drowning in stuff. According to the Journal of Consumer Affairs, there are over 50,000 mini storage units in the United States right now. Our houses can’t contain what we accumulate. So we spend over $20 billion annually to store our surplus.

Organizing so much stuff

No wonder YouTube is awash with influencers telling us how to declutter, what to get rid of, and how to organize what we keep. And I’m an eternal optimist when it comes to organization. I always believe that this new system will be the one that brings my life to a state of perfect order.

System? What system?

However, I would settle for a system that let me keep track of what I have so I don’t keep replacing things that I have “somewhere” but can’t find. My ADD brain operates on the principle of “out of sight, out of mind” which explains the stashes of condiments, paperclips, and stickers that I always find only when looking for something else.

Stuff complicates our lives. We buy stuff, then we buy containers and systems to keep track of our stuff. And we buy cameras and systems to protect the stuff we go in debt to buy. That sounds pointless, right?

But as ridiculous as it sounds, we find it hard to break free of our obsession with stuff. We may dedicate hours to minimizing our possessions but end up replacing them with newer, more expensive substitutes days or weeks later. 

Why so much stuff?

Every year my neighborhood hosts a huge yard sale. Several families participate, the neighborhood kids sell lemonade and muffins, and hundreds of bargain hunters show up from early morning until mid-day. And every June, the pattern repeats.

Other neighborhoods have similar patterns. I understand that some of us outgrow our clothes, and our tastes may change from time to time. But that doesn’t account for the sheer volume of stuff we clean out of attics and basements every year. You’d think we would eventually have empty closets and bare floors, but so far, there is no end to the supply of so much stuff. 

Tempted to keep up? 

As followers of Jesus, we know that there is more to life than stuff and that our treasure is supposed to be in Heaven. But it can hard to separate wants from needs.  And our needs can vary when our job changes, or when we change locations. 

What’s the answer? How can we live in the modern world and not be taken in by the lure of consumerism. The Bible has a lot to say about our attitudes toward stuff. And the writer of Ecclesiastes  asked many of the same questions we do.  

What’s it all about? 

King Solomon was the wisest man of his generation. And he outlined his quest for satisfaction. When he found his wisdom and wealth weren’t enough to satisfy his search for meaning, he turnsed to food and alcohol, and found them a dead end as well. 

After this, he used his vast resources to build magnificent buildings. He filled extravagant gardens with treasures from all over the world. And he still felt  empty and frustrated. 

Remember, Solomon began his reign as a devout young man humble and aware of his shortcomings. He should have known that none of the things he was exploring would bring him satisfaction. But scripture shows us that he turned away from God. No wonder he searched so frantically for answers. 

Amazon doesn’t deliver happiness 

I don’t have Solomon’s wealth and wisdom. But I do have his tendency to look for satisfaction in the wrong places. I think it’s human nature. But Amazon doesn’t deliver happiness. In fact, they are more likely to deliver dissatisfaction.

How did we get here? 

How can we as believers combat the idea that more stuff will make us happy? How can we make good choices about how we spend our resources? 

First, we should consider why we have so much stuff in the first place. 

We hang on to things for a lot of reasons. For individuals who grew up in homes where their basic needs weren’t met, surrounding themselves with stuff can alleviate the fear that they will once again be in need. 

Am I sentimental about so much stuff? 

Some may struggle with sentimentality and feel like downsizing is disrespectful to a spouse or parent who left them with the items. 

Others look to things as proof that they are worthy to be respected. I was reminded of this when purchasing a car recently. I needed a car, but I got obsessed with a model that wasn’t practical for me at all.

But I loved the way it looked.  More than that, I liked the way I looked driving it. That is painful to admit. I did manage to pull myself away and buy something more practical. But it was an interesting lesson about my own vanity, and my insecurity too. 

Some people stockpile resources in case of a disaster. This can be a good thing, if you intend to share what you have. Most of us have an emergency stash of some sort. Natural disasters are common, and it’s good to be prepared.    As people  of prayer we should ask God what we should save and what we should give away.

Then, we need to evaluate our individual situations and pray about why God has allowed us to have the resources we treasure. 

Thou shalt not have so much stuff? 

Of course, there is no verse of scripture that says: “Thou shalt not purchase the newest iPhone.” It’s never that easy. But God provides us with principles to use to make sound decisions.

Here are a few “kingdom principles” to consider.

First, when we understand that God is our source, He gives us peace of mind and a healthy attitude toward stuff. Jesus said can serve God or Mammon,  a demonic  god of greed. But we couldn’t have it both ways. God will not share His glory.

When we believe that the latest bit of technology is going to make us rich, powerful or wise, we should hear the echo of the Serpent’s offer to Eve. The fruit seemed to hold everything she desired. But in that moment, she forgot that God had always been the source of everything she needed and desired.

Second, when we understand that we are stewards rather than owners, our attitude will shift from “how much can I hoard?” to “how should I allocate what God has given me?”. He gives us certain things for our own use, but He gives us others to share. We need to make sure we know the difference.

Third, when we understand God’s love and compassion, we can let go of our need to acquire and learn to accept His provision as what is best for us. And maybe we can let go of some extra stuff because we know that our Father will meet our needs. 

A final lesson from Dad

I still have too much stuff. And sometimes I still believe I am one organizational system away from having it under control.  But managing my father’s estate was a good reminder. My Dad’s wealth wasn’t in the tools and clothes that we cleared from the house. He was a skilled electrician and could fix almost anything. And he was  the first person many people called for help. He didn’t turn them down. He was generous with what God gave him. The tools were valuable because of the one who used them. 

I want to be faithful with what God has given me. That’s how we lay up treasures in Heaven. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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