Having cleared out my Dad and Mom’s house has freshly reminded me of the vanity of accumulating things. They only had the very basics, but fifty-seven years of marriage yields much stuff.
Dad was a “shade tree mechanic” and had a lot of tools. His nice welder was sold for $75.00. Mom’s prized cedar chest sold for $100.00. Their freezer went for $20.00. A lady offered $125.00 for the remaining furniture.
The wisest man who ever lived has warned us of this process.
Solomon said things like:
“I acquired large herds and flocks
I piled up silver and gold
I gathered a chorus of singers to entertain me with song.”
Oh, how I prospered!”“Then I took a good look at everything I’d done, looked at all the sweat and hard work. But when I looked, I saw nothing but smoke. Smoke and spitting into the wind. There was nothing to any of it. Nothing!” Ecclesiastes 2:8-11 The Message
“I hated everything I’d accomplished and accumulated on this earth. I can’t take it with me-no, I have to leave it to whoever comes after me. Whether they’re worthy or worthless—and who’s to tell?—they’ll take over the earthly results of my intense thinking and hard work. Smoke!
What’s the point of working your fingers to the bone if you hand over what you worked for to someone who never lifted a finger for it? Smoke! Ecc 2:18-21 The Message“The one who loves money is never satisfied with money. Nor the one who loves wealth with big profits. More smoke.” Ecc 5:10 The Message
“Hard and honest work earns a good night’s sleep,
Whether supper is beans or steak.
But a rich man’s belly gives him insomnia.” Ecc 5:12 The Message“We work to feed our appetites;
Meanwhile our souls go hungry.” Ecc 6:7
Are you spending time accumulating stuff, or cultivating relationships and memories that will live on after you are gone?
Mike
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