Care Hoarders

“Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.”-1 Peter 5:7

Hoarding, a known clinical disorder where people find it difficult to part with their possessions because of the perceived need to save them.  Hoarding cases can range from moderate to severe.  It is likely that most of us hoard our possession to some degree; because of sentiment, ambition, business, laziness, or some other reason.  The reality is, everything we own, owns us.  Whether we care to admit this or not, what you care for influences the cares you have in this world, and what you care about is manifested in what you’re caring for.

Recently, the house coworker’s relative (sister to be exact) caught fire. They woke in the middle of the night to the smoke alarm going off and the house being engulfed in flames.  It being an old home, they had but a few precious seconds to grab the kids and race out the door.  Only to watch as everything they owned burned to the ground.  It all happened so fast, the only thing they were able to take with them was the clothes on their backs and their two small children.  The cell phones, laptops, TV, pictures, toys, books, furniture, lamps, clothes, everything; all those things in this life that we hoard and hold onto; gone forever.  They were left with only what was most important to them in this life.  It is remarkable, and tragic, how quickly the fire sorted out what was most important to them.  Truly, we need things of this world to live, but we are not living for the things of this world.  If you let it, everything you own or hope to own, will own you.  The world’s idea is to work, strive, labor, buy, sell, and get gain; in doing so we heap to ourselves cares and cares of this world.  Some of this process is needful, in order to exist and provide for those whom you are responsible for, but the rest is just hoarding.  What is it about human nature that causes us to hoard?  What is it about human nature that drives us to wallow in confusion, chaos, and clutter?  This is true for not only the things we own, but the cares that come with them.  We would spend our lives buying, selling, gaining, getting, and worrying about how we are going to keep safe all that we have gain and gotten.  Working all our lives to get and gain, hoping that we get and gain enough so that we one day don't have to worry?  This is one reason why the things of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the Word and it becometh unfruitful; because they lead us into thinking that we are the masters of our life, and the ones who can bring peace and contentment to our souls.  This is why the Bible says that the work of righteousness shall be peace and the effect quietness and assurance forever.  It is God’s working that brings peace and contentment.  It is Jesus who comforts and directs us.  The Word is trying to lead us in a path away from the cares of this world, and the flesh is constantly crying at us to care, to hoard care, and to obtain that which will one day fade away.  Please do not misinterpret; I am not saying that simply having stuff in this life means that we are un-Christian or full of care.  Rather, that when you have/hoard the world and all it brings into your heart how long until it is in your life?  The opposite is also true, when you have/hoard the world in your life, how long until it is in your heart?  When it’s in our hearts, that is when we stand in danger of losing our souls.  When our care is our care and not his. 

The extortion of the Apostle Peter is to cast all your care upon Him for he careth for you.  What you care for, care about, and what calls out at you to care; cast it upon Jesus.  Let him be the one that purges or adds to your life.  The one who directs you in the way most profitable for His kingdom.  God does not want us to hoard care and worry.  He wants to be the holder of all care.  Give it to God, let it go, and let him guide.