SPRING & PURGING

Mom on Easter Sunday 2009

Well, it's getting about that time of year again. Spring is in the air. Trees and plants are blooming. Pollen is floating in the air so bad that there is yellow dust all over cars and sidewalks and front porches. People are sneezing and coughing. Yet, everyone is so excited to be outdoors exercising, working in their yards, biking, strolling children, playing golf and tennis or just standing visiting with their neighbors in their front yard. Yes, there is a newness in the air that comes with each Spring season. A freshness that makes people feel excited, energized and want to do something different. It is as if people have been hibernating for a long time and are ready to break out into a new world!

Spring is also a time for many people to relocate. When I was working for a real estate company (in my early 20's), Spring was a busy season for real estate sales people. People would begin to "look" for that new place they wanted to buy - that change they wanted to make. Many times, it was the time their employer would relocate them - especially if they had families. Kids would soon be out of school - a perfect time to relocate before the new school year.

Yet with a move, comes much. Much planning, much organization, much purging of personal items, much labor, much anxiety of leaving behind family, friends, churches, neighborhoods, sports teams, weekly activities, etc. It's the anxiety of purging and leaving behind that sometimes outweighs the original excitement we get with the coming of Spring and the first rush we remember of the new we are about to experience.

My mom is thinking of leaving her home and moving to an independent living facility in Lufkin or here in San Antonio. We (meaning me and my siblings) are extremely excited for her. I believe she too, is excited. It will mean no more worrying about paying someone to care for her lawn and worrying why they haven't come to take care of it after much rain and it looking so bad to the neighbors. It means no more having to worry if the housekeeper will be there that day, no more having to find a "fix it" person to do minor repairs and pay half her monthly stipend to get it done. It means no more worrying if the vents in each room are closed or open to help save on air or heat in order to keep her electric bill from overtaking her income. No more of many, many worries the normal homeowner shares each and every day that weigh on our minds. She will now be able to socialize with friends, join in game days, outings, eat at white table cloth dining two times a day, and much more. Her time will be her own without the many worries of home upkeep.

Yet in the beginning, along with this new found freedom, there will be a price. Before it all begins, there is a cost. The cost is the purging. How hard it is for many of us to purge those things we all hold so dear. There are pictures, trinkets, gifts from our children, furniture, even things like marriage certificates, vaccination records, I even have my two dog's ashes (I know...but I had to put each to sleep after 15 years and I just couldn't put them in the ground!). And for many, the purging is great. My mom will have to purge much. She will even have to downsize her furniture, meaning she will have to leave it behind and buy new. Yes, it is fun for us to buy new furniture, buy new things for a new place to live. But many of us bring so much with us when we do, we are able to mix the trinkets and the pictures, the gifts, family heirlooms and etc. that when we get it all together, it looks like we have had it forever. With others who are having to purge so much, the difficulty is purging much and picking so little you are able to take and still making it feel like home. Moving from a three bedroom home to a one bedroom apartment will be a challenge. Purging will be tough.

It makes me think of Christ. He left His home in heaven to come as a child to earth. I think...life on earth was NOTHING like life in heaven. Talk about PURGING! He left a majestic, kingdom and came into a rotten, sinful world to live among men, only to take upon his white as snow, pure body, the repulsive sins of man and be placed in a dark tomb. However, He did return to His kingdom. He did return to that majestic place. It is beautiful and it is not purged of anything!

For believers, Christ has promised that He has prepared a place, a home, for us in His kingdom. A place where there is no pain, no sorrow, no sickness, no anger....pure majesty. It is a HOME where nothing is purged. We will have EVERYTHING we need, everything will be as it should and we will be overjoyed. It will always be as if it is Spring with even more excitement! However, we won't want to do or move or make a change as we do here on earth. We will already be changed into a new body, a new life, a new creation!

So today, I am thankful for Spring, purging of the old and putting on the new! You see, that is what our Lord did when He died for us and rose again in three days. That is what we celebrate at Easter. For believers, he paid for our sins and they are removed at the cross. He rose from the dead having victory over death, giving us a new life, in Him.

So celebrate Spring! Celebrate purging the old! Celebrate Easter all year round!