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"And I will say to my soul, 'Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.'"
(Luke 12:19)
Charles Stanley told the story of an elderly man and his grandson. The grandfather asked his grandson what he would do with his life. The young man replied that he would get an education or learn a trade or skill. The elderly man asked what he would do next. The grandson said that he would gain wealth and notoriety. "What then?" asked the grandfather. The grandson said he would get rich! "Then what?" The grandson said that he would eventually retire from his work. "Then what?" The young man thought about it and then said, "I guess I will die." Then the wise grandfather asked this most important question, "What then?"
There is an eternity coming for us all, a point in time where we all must stand before God and give an account of our life. The grave error or mistake the man in Jesus's parable made was he held tightly to the wrong thing: his wealth. He loved the blessings more than the Blesser, the gifts more than the Giver. He had way more than he needed, but was selfish and not rich toward God and others, and he ended up losing the most important thing: his everlasting soul.
Stanley also taught in his message the following things people tend to grip very tightly:
- Relationships: Some destroy relationships because they have this tightening hold on them. A child may love his new puppy, but if he squeezes it too tightly, he can harm or even kill it. I thought of Sigmund Freud's relationship with his daughter, Anna. If the movie, Freud's Last Session, accurately depicted their relationship, then it was one where the father held on too tightly, and it was most unhealthy for both. You see this often where one grips the relationship, and it becomes an idol, and the other person pulls away.
- Goals: Instead of asking God, "What do You want me to do," they grip what they want to do. In the parable Jesus told, the man was dominated by what he wanted, not what God wanted for his life. Luke 12:17 says, "and he thought within himself". He began reasoning to himself, "What shall I do," instead of asking God what He wanted him to do.
- The Past: This is something that many people hold too tightly. The past they dwell in leads them to unforgiveness, bitterness, and resentment. They simply can't let it go. It leads to animosity over what others did to them. Some grip the unhealthy past so tightly that they lose the blessings of the future.
- Old Hurts: Some hold old wounds very tightly and refuse to surrender them. By dwelling on all those heartaches and hurts of the past, they miss God's best, and sadly, they take those hurtful feelings out on others. People often reveal that they are holding onto old hurts by the lack of joy in their lives and the sadness of their countenances.
- Wrong Ideas: These ideas can stem from faulty teaching or even something that their parents erroneously believed. They grip these wrong conclusions not realizing they are living in error. The great antidote for this is to go to the Word of God and see what God says about the subject.
- Wrong Perceptions of Situations: This happens when we leave God out and try to figure out things on our own. I know I am guilty of this at times. I find myself thinking deeply within but thinking wrongly and gripping wrongful thoughts and conclusions, and that is unhealthy. A better way is to pray, then talk to others about what you are thinking, and let them speak some sense and truth into you!
Wrong thinking leads to wrong behavior and a death grip on things we should not be squeezing. Ask the Lord to help you let those things go. Ask God to empower you to hold all things loosely except your relationship with Him and His Word.
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