We Would Never Be A Hoarder Would We?

Maybe you've seen the reality show called Hoarders. The producers find someone who is clearly obsessed with keeping everything and a team of expert organizers, a psychologist and other helpers try to get them to change their ways.

In most cases it's not easy. There is usually all sorts of personal baggage hidden under their emotional layers of debris which will not be disposed of quickly. Often the person breaks down in despair seeing their prized possessions being thrown in a dumpster or at best organized.

Most of us watching a program like that would say, "That will never be me. I couldn't stand living that way." And we're probably right. There are only a small percentage of people who will endure the extremes of a true hoarder.

But I wonder if a lot of us aren't closer than we think, at least in spirit. We really do hoard we just do it in an organized and more acceptable way.  Let me suggest a few areas where potential hoarding can crop up in our homes.

We may hoard successes. We keep trying to add one more award, win, trophy or adulation for our kids or ourselves. We live for the next chance to tell a friend or put on Facebook the latest impressive feats in our family. How many Christmas letters rather than just giving an update on the family's important moments of the year are filled with all of the latest things to brag about on each person?

We may hoard security. Of course it makes sense to set aside savings for emergencies and retirement and to do all we can to make sure our family needs are maintained. But many keep adding more: another piece of real estate, bank accounts, other income streams and the like. We're never satisfied that enough is enough.

We can hoard extra stuff. Just like we might do with our finances we feel we always have to have a lot of abundance or we won't be OK. So we buy mulitiples of everything, never miss a good sale and keep trying to find more space to store it all in.

So what might we do at our house to battle the temptation to hoard?

First, make giving things and money away the norm at home. Look for ways to share what you have, find a regular place to give things to and teach your kids to do the same. Yes, be wise and careful that you have planned well for your needs then give the rest to someone or a great organization.

Second, take inventory and pare things down to only what you need. This may take some soul-searching and admitting that you really do have too much. Get rid of a lot, have a garage sale or rent a truck and donate things to a needy organization. If you really want to get serious, move into a smaller home and you will quickly find you can't take it all and will have to do something about it.

Third, start living in ways where you must trust God more to make it. Don't be foolish. God  has blessed us in many ways so that we would have what we need. Take good care of those basic things. But find some challenges, mission opportunities or whatever that require you to have special faith in God meeting your needs. You will live on a lot less but live a lot more.

Developing Hearts for The Hurting In Your Home

As I write today I'm just a few days now from leaving for eight days in Russia. It will be my eleventh trip there. And I know that once again I soon will be hit head on with how blessed we are in America and how God has given me and my family so much. I always come back enriched and with my heart full though when I'm around these sweet people who have learned to live with lots less than me.

I also grieve as do people all over the world the huge losses in Haiti from the recent earthquake there. Thousands have died and those who were already so poor now have even less. And while many are giving time, treasure and talents to help, none of us can ever understand the incredible pain and suffering these people are facing.

You see I'm reminded once again how important it is for us and our families to do our best to not only learn about and understand those less fortunate than we are but to also do what we can to help in very tangible ways.

So how can we do that in our busy, often comfortable, worlds? Do we have to literally go and live in another country or even travel to places of poverty to do so? Not necessarily.

First, start by re-evaluating your own lifestyle. A family at my church recently moved into a smaller home. They could easily afford the larger one but they made a conscious, deliberate decision to downsize and give more away! Wow.

They didn't just talk about re-evaluating - they did it! Can you imagine the long-term impact their decision will have on them and their children's view of things, success, and possessions in general? Think about the lessons they are already learning about having less and giving more away!

Maybe downsizing will be just cutting back on some luxuries, not always having to have the big vacation or skipping the extra lattes for awhile. You'll have to decide that for yourself. However, think about ways to literally change some of your everyday practices so that you can help others more.

Second, become intentional about giving. If you attend church, it's likely that the leaders there have already developed some ready-made connections with organizations where you can give your time, talent or treasure. Give sacrificially to your church so they can help those groups and then give over and above that. Pick a group that you and your family will help on a regular basis and involve your children in the process.

We just started helping a single mom and her kids who live in an RV (yes an RV) here in Austin. Our small group joined forces and we've committed to help her, not just with money, but with time, advice, counsel and direction so that she eventually thrive on her own. We've just started but there's something very special and meaningful about the relationship we've begun with her and her children.

Third, get your hands dirty. Our church provides scores of missions trips and serving opportunities, both locally and abroad, that our people can become a part of each year. Almost every person who goes has two things happen. First of all, they get wrecked in a good way. They see how much they have, they build relationships with real people, and they figure out that they've never felt so alive than they did when they were actually caring for others. They are never the same after that.

In addition, they begin to develop a lifestyle that is more about giving than taking. And their kids start to see the changes and they too get involved. Many of our people who served here locally now serve at least once a month if not more. In many locations we now know the names of the people we serve because we see them all the time.

No person or church can do everything but we can all do something. And if we want to teach our children the importance of giving, loving and serving others then we can start the process now by getting "dirty" together.

Who could you start helping today? A neighbor, a friend, some people in your neighborhood, community or city? What special gifts and resources do you have that might encourage someone else? You may not be able to leave for Russia or Haiti today, but you can start helping close to home. Do it now. Jesus said in Matthew 25:40, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these of mine, you did for me."



How could we not do something?