Faith on the Quad The Message in the Closet

Last weekend before I went on a retreat, I decided to clean out my room.  It looked spectacular – it was vacuumed, the bed was made, and everything was neatly organized in preparation for the friends my family was going to host that Friday. It felt good to leave knowing I was going to come back to the peace of a clean room.

As I was on my way home last night I receive a message from my younger sister which said: “The pole in your closet snapped and the shelf came down.” I didn’t think it was going to be a terribly big deal until I arrived home and saw that the bolts and brackets had all fallen and left huge holes in the walls. It was not a mess I could easily clean up; rather, my closet was going to need major reconstruction.

My organized sanctuary had become a dusty, cluttered construction site. I had organized my room, but I didn’t take the time to get rid of the things I didn’t need anymore. Though my closet was full of color-coordinated clothing, it was packed full of unnecessary things I hadn’t taken the time to get rid of. My room looked organized, but it really wasn’t. And, in the end, it all came crashing down from the weight.

This whole ordeal made clear a crucial reality. I had tried so hard to create peace in my room, but I wasn’t willing to let go of the frivolous things in my room. There were dresses, shoes, books, and bags that I just couldn’t give away. It was because of these things that, no matter how hard I tried, my room could not become the place I wished it to be, and in the end it had nearly self-destructed. In our own lives we often desire peace, order and happiness. We work on exterior things and try to create a pleasant environment for ourselves. In the end, however, we never reach that peace or happiness we had hoped for. Many times it is because of the things we hold on to. Our hearts become full of these things and there is no room left for Christ and therefore no room for happiness.

Our culture convinces us that certain things are entirely necessary in our lives. These things come in many different forms. We are attached to drugs, sex, parties, shopping or food. We might also be attached to flattery or feeling needed. And, no matter how well we organize our lives, we cannot reach the true peace of a saint if we don’t cut the strings to these unnecessary addictions.

We are afraid to let go of these things because they bring us temporary bits of happiness. We don’t trust that the happiness Christ will bring us will be lasting fulfillment, so we hold on. This summer we have an opportunity away from the stresses of schoolwork and constant commitment to recognize what things we are attatched to, and then to humbly and courageously open our fists to let go of the things we are grasping. We can stop clinging to affirmations and compliments, or vanity and pride, and learn to cling to Christ.

The song “Before It’s too Late” by Goo Goo Dolls offers us a challenge. They say “The risk that might break you is the one that would save…So stand on the edge with me, hold back your fear and see, nothing is real ‘til its gone.” Let us now, as we stand on the edge of the past, looking out into tomorrow, let go of the things of this world and realize we can’t experience real happiness until they are gone.

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