I’m ashamed to admit it. I love my truck.
I’m generally not a materialistic person. My clothes are dated. My house isn’t the biggest or newest among my friends. My everyday car is scratched and dented from its previous owner and doesn’t have a single automated function on it (did you know they still make cars without cruise control, auto locks and intermitten wipers?). I don’t need the latest and greatest of everything. You won’t find a flat screen digital TV in my house.
But you will find a 3/4 ton GMC Sierra Duramax diesel parked in my garage. The clattering of the engine is a tell-tale sign of its power and usefulness. My horse trailer is like a feather behind my truck. (If I were a man, I’d probably grunt after that comment.) It has all of the bells and whistles, including heated leather seats. I am a queen in my chariot when I drive my truck. Did I mention I love my truck?
I baby it. It only comes out during riding season when I need to pull the trailer, or when I have an important client to drive around. I like to believe I baby it because it was expensive and I want it to last for a long, long time.
But it’s just an inanimate object. A piece of metal. A tool for hauling stuff or pulling my trailer. A material possession that will one day wear out like all the others.
Recently on a Christian talk show, I heard someone ask “What in your life are you holding too tightly? What is it that God wants you to let go of?” I knew immediately it was my truck.
I believe that God has provided everything for us. All of our wealth and provision come from his hand. He even brings the people into our lives to bless us. That means I am just a steward of his possessions. Everything that I have belongs to him and should be available for his service. My love for and over protection of my truck are completely inconsistent with my Christian beliefs.
After hearing the radio show, I recalled an incident of the previous week when someone suggested another person borrow my truck for moving. I cringed at the suggestion and shamelessly directed a dirty look to the person making the suggestion. I quickly realized what God wanted me to do. Let go of my claim on my truck.
I offered my truck for moving. Later that day, I offered the truck to my uncle who needed to take his boat to his cabin. A few days later, my cousin asked for the truck to move a dresser. Each time, I had thoughts of my truck coming back smashed up. I worried about them turning the truck on without waiting for the gloplugs to warm up (is that what gloplugs do?), or worse, putting unleaded fuel in my diesel truck. Then where would I be? I would be the one inconvenienced without my truck.
My truck was returned to me tonight. Unharmed. Motor still running. Tank full diesel fuel. Of course, all of my anxiety is for nothing. I’m still learning the lesson of letting go of my truck, and whatever and whomever else in my life I may be holding too tightly.
What in your life might you be holding too tightly? What of yours might God want to use to do his work? Will you turn it over to him?
Luke 12:15 (NLT) Then he said, “Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.”
Matthew 6:19-21 (NIV): “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
