Packing it Away

It is the day after Christmas, and as I am packing my Christmas dishes and serving pieces and putting them away, I am feeling convicted. I have been reading blogs and editorials on how we have too much "stuff" in America. How ridiculous it is to have a set of dishes we only eat from one day a year, or maybe even a week of the year!

I have 2 shelves in my pantry and 2 kitchen cabinets designated for seasonal "Stuff" for the kitchen: dishes, serving pieces, centerpieces, candles, napkin rings, placemats, napkins, tablecloths for Birthdays, Easter, Thanksgiving, Christmas. It is a lifetime of collecting. Some of it is 2 or 3 lifetimes old.

I have items that belonged to my parents or my grandparents (although most of that I have already divided up among my grown children,keeping only an item or 2.) Then the rest I have garnered over the years. Much of the items were gifts. A few items I picked up at a thrift store or garage sale.

See that sounds like I am trying to justify my owning it. Which, right away, runs up a red flag. If I have to think and work so hard to rationalize it or excuse it, then maybe it is wrong to begin with? Is the Lord calling for *me* to purge myself of "Stuff"? Even more importantly, am I trying to argue with Him over it?

With my sanguine personality, I have to be careful. I tend to go overboard on everything...impulsively! I have given my wedding ring set and my great grandmother's antique gold wedding band to the church in years past. I know God honored my sacrifices, but I am not sure He was the One asking for them. For a sacrifice, I have burned a manuscript for a book I wrote.

I live in the deep south where some traditions are ingrained in us from childhood. I studied Home Economics in college, and we were taught the importance of a "well appointed" home and kitchen. I attended a Ladies Leadership seminar in Alexandria, LA, some years ago and one of the courses was on gracious living. The lady teaching it spoke of paper plates and napkins and cups being for picnics, not family meals, reminding me of much of my training.

However, when you are raising 5 children, much of that gets left by the wayside, except for holidays. Hence the holiday collections I own. Before Christmas dinner yesterday as Melanie removed the centerpiece from the table to make room for food, I was telling Jonathan how in Home Ec we were always taught to have a nice centerpiece, usually fresh and homemade, using whatever was in the yard. Andrea and Tiffany used to make lovely centerpieces from stuff in the yard. It never seemed to matter though, as I explained to Jonathan, because we always removed them from the table to make room for food or to be able to see each other.

At Thanksgiving, at Andrea's house, Vivian, Melanie, and I made little paper place cards for everyone. We laid a fresh tablecloth and even created a centerpiece from stuff around the house that Andrea had used in decorating. It was quite lovely, but continuing in tradition, I noticed Andrea removed it to a side table for the meal.

As we were packing the stuff away, I was sharing some of my quandary with Melanie. She responded that I have not gone overboard with stuff. I do not own 2 or 4 or 10 sets of Christmas dishes.

I know of folks who have no pictures and no knickknacks and no elements of decor in their homes in honor of God. I respect and admire their sacrifice. For them, it is what they must do to follow their consciences and so long as they do not judge others by that same standard then they are not to be judged.

I have something to think and pray and fast on this year. Is this God calling me to such a sacrifice or is it just my impulsive, over the top nature? Do not get me wrong! I am not saying it is wrong to have pretty things and a well appointed home....unless...God has spoken to you to shed those things or unless you serve those things instead of using them to serve others.

For many years, my stuff was used to serve my family wholesome, nutritious meals, shared around a table of love and laughter. It was used to teach them gracious living because I believe the people of God should be a gracious people of dignity, integrity, and manners. For many years, our home was open to serve the lost, the lonely,the hurting. For many years, on Thanksgiving, we would invite someone who had no family in the area to share our meal with us.

Serving others was a great tradition in our home. At a Women's Conference in Tioga, I once purchased a book on making memories with your children. One idea was to prepare a special meal, get out the guest dishes and linens and tell them someone special was coming to dinner. Then when they came to eat, tell them it was them. What a great idea (I thought)! So I proceeded to put it into play. The kids were all excited and made name cards and helped me cook and clean and decorate.

"Who is coming, Mama??" they would ask excitedly.

"It's a surprise! " I would reply! What I did not realize is they did not hear "surpirse." Bishop Sarin's sister is a lovely, gracious lady named Sis. Price. They heard me say,"It's Sis. Price!"

They were so thrilled and honored to be able to serve Sis. Price. They even went to change clothes before dinner into their Sunday best. I will never ever for as long as I live forget the disappointment on those 4 little faces when they came into the living room, and we told them it was them, that they were our special guests! They actually cried, and went in Andrea's room, bawling, refusing to eat their meal they had worked so hard on. We finally got it out of them that they had heard "Sis. Price is coming!"

I am reminded of a seminar I attended in Baton Rouge with Bishop and Sis. Sartin and people from the church. Several of us sat at dinner, and spoke of how proud we were of our pastor and his wife and their beautiful, gracious manners. I am reminded of a young lady who told me she visited a church that was considering hiring her. Afterward when she went to lunch with the leadership, she said she wanted to slip quietly away because of people being rude to the waitstaff or evidencing poor manners at the table. During that lunch, she made her decision to not be a part of that ministry.

My health of late has negated my serving much these days. My children are all grown now and do not need me to serve them. Perhaps the conviction I am feeling is not over having the stuff but over how I have not used it much of late to serve others in His name. Jesus never condemned Martha for serving others and for toiling to have a well appointed household. The virtuous woman in Proverbs is honored for doing such things.

In years past, we did not have much, but what we had we shared; we tried to make it as gracious as we could. Now I have so much more than I had then, I want to be careful not to shut the doors of compassion and mercy.