Many of you know I am a craigslist addict. I haunt the site looking for things I can’t live without, but didn’t know it. Through craigslist I’ve gotten huge cardboard tubes I’ve used as roman columns for Vacation Bible School; furniture for my son when he was moving into an apartment for college; a car; and a myriad of other treasures. Craigslist reminds me of the old Sears Wishbook. Some of you will remember what I am talking about. Sears used to create huge pictorial catalogues of things they had for sale. A month or two before Christmas Sears would print the “Wishbook” version of the catalogue, which had about 4 million pages of toys. As I child I would go through the pages of the catalogue and drool over all the beautiful toys. There was the Lil Indian minibike which nearly every red blooded American male wanted, but which few of us had a place to ride, and even fewer would ever get to see one in real life. There were the Daisy BB guns, and the fancy erector sets which made my heart skip a beat. Nearly every page of the toy section offered treasures to set a boy’s heart trembling. Well, the days of the Wishbook are gone. My “toys” have gotten substantially more expensive. And I find I’ve traded my childhood minibike dreams for a midlife crisis scooter. Now I look at the free section of craigslist hoping to find some treasure which will be just the thing I need, something that will be another piece of treasured clutter in an already overcrowded life.
The sad truth is, I am a bit greedy. I like possessing stuff. I may not need it, or even know how to use it, but if it’s free on craigslist there’s a chance I’ll call to see if it’s available. Llama laryngoscope? Sure, I could use one of them. Geiger counter? Who doesn’t want one? Spent rods of radio active materials from the local nuclear power plant? Hmm, I think I have a spot for one or two of those (although I’ve never seen them on craigslist). Springs from a jackhammer? Perhaps they’ll work on a custom made pogo stick I’ll never build. Gold-plated buffalo dung? What a keepsake, is it still available?!
I’m a bit of a collector, but I’m getting better. I still lurk on craigslist, now and then. But I don’t try to get anything and everything that’s out there. When we are in the greed mindset, we won’t be happy until we have just a little bit more. Things don’t bring joy or contentment. Collections don’t offer fulfillment or peace of mind. A camel saddle, rope and bridle don’t make for a fuller life, just a fuller garage. In John 10 Jesus says, “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” Life and happiness aren’t about getting the most toys or lusting after unreachable treasures in the Wishbook. Life is about knowing Jesus Christ. It is in knowing Jesus that we discover the real meaning of life. It is in knowing His love that we discover what love truly is. Life and fulfillment are found in knowing it’s not about us…but about Jesus and what He has done for us. It’s about being who God made us to be. Joy is found in Jesus.
Chad