Closing the door on an empty shed. It had a bunch of junk in it. Our junk. Many things that held sentimental value that were difficult to let go. Why do many of us wrestle with letting go of such things?

I have known all my life that this earth is not my home, this body will not last. I am confident that my mom will be one of the first to greet me when I cross over, but I still keep a card she sent me so I can look one more time at her handwriting. Dad's been gone for over 50 years now, but I still hold on to worn out tools that he used.

Perhaps it is because we see that past as it were a thing of great value; something worthy of being grasped. I sense that somehow I am afraid of losing so much more than the item I might relinquish.

But I also look at all my stuff around me now and hope that these things do not become a burden to my children someday. My hope is that they will cherish their memories of me rather than weigh themselves down with these useless trinkets. The one and only thing I hope to pass on is my faith. That’s it. If they have that, they have all they need to remember of me.

That’s because God is the only reason any of it matters at all any way. If not for him, there would be nothing worthwhile as he is the only standard against which we can measure real and lasting value. Without him there would be no purpose in life, and no hope in death. Everything would be meaningless.

With God, however, even an empty storage unit reminds me that none of the stuff we have here is worth holding onto. Better is coming. The one who rose from the grave never to die again has prepared a home for us that needs no storage shed for our junk. That’s because everything of real value will already be there.