I've got a contract pending on eternity

I've got a plan to lose it all. The words to Switchfoot's song come to me as I read Matthew 19:16~ "What good things must I do to get eternal life?" the rich young man asks. "Obey the commandments," Jesus says. (of course there's more to the conversation and I'm not meaning to take any of it away, so go read it for yourself! hehe) But next is the killer line... "Which ones?" the young man inquires.

Which ones?? Which ones?!?!?!

Talk about silly questions. How do you ask the Savior of the universe "which" commands you should obey? LoL! RoFl! But then I stop, and realize that I do this all the time. Actually, I don't even ask first. I simply pick and choose the ones I feel like obeying. Conviction all over again. God, you are good at it, that's for sure. And I'm so thankful for your Word working to alert me to these things; working to change me into the image of the One who died in my place so that I could live forever with you. You ARE beautiful!

Anyway, back to the original thought. Jesus gives the rich guy a short list. As if that could really cement his spot in eternity, when all it takes is childlike faith in the One who is speaking. "All these I have kept," he says... and yet he doesn't stop there. Many people would have stopped there, I think, to have received such a definitive list from the Lord. But not this guy... why? Why? Because he knows something is still missing. This is how God made us; with the keen sense, if we look deeply enough into ourselves, to know that something is still missing. "What do I still lack?" he asks.

And Jesus replies, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell all you have. Give it all away to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."

Give it all away.

It used to be I couldn't fathom this concept. I wanted a house, a car, a computer, another computer, a big screen TV... But then a school teacher, Debbie Strickland, spoke at our church on how she had "simplified", getting rid of everything that she didn't really need, and how that had truly freed her. I've come to see these "things" I have as just anchors that keep me from being able to run after Jesus. Like those weights he talks about in Hebrews chapter 12. I can't just up and go anywhere to do anything. I need to get rid of all this "stuff" first!

And so... now... I'm making a plan... a plan to lose it all.