Apples of Gold
Radio Script for September 4, 2008
“What If I Lost It All?”
Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.
Have you ever studied the Great Depression?
After the stock market crash, many people lost everything they had.
And some of them committed suicide.
Their identity, their sense of self worth was so wrapped up in their possessions that when they lost them they saw their life as worthless.
And that leads to this question. How would I react if I lost my possessions? How would that affect my identity? Would I still be who I am without my stuff?
What if I didn’t have my house or my car or these clothes? What if I lost it all? Would I still be the same old me, or would part of me be lost?
What about you? What if you had to move to a poorer neighborhood? What if you had to drive a beat up car, would you be lessened somehow? What could someone take away from you that would really hit you personally?
Ladies, what if they took your makeup? Would being forced to go without makeup shred your identity? What if they cleaned out your closet and you had to wear someone else’s leftovers?
Men, what if they took your tools, or your truck, or your big TV? Would you be less of a man without them?
This is a good mental exercise, because I think many of us would be rocked to the core if we lost our possessions.
See, if we’re not careful, what we own can become our identity. “Who am I? I’m the one with that house right there.”
“I’m the one with that car.”
“I’m the one who always has the latest cell phone.”
Cell phones may not be your thing, but what has its hooks in you? Take it away and it would tear away a piece of you – and you would grieve the loss.
“Come on, Doug. What kind of person could be robbed of their stuff and not be shaken?”
Look at Hebrews 10:34. It’s talking about people who had their property confiscated. And listen to their reaction. It says they joyfully accepted it.
That’s crazy! How could anyone joyfully accept that?
Here’s how. When they lost their stuff, they basically lost nothing. Oh, they were inconvenienced, but they didn’t grieve the loss. They didn’t lose part of themselves because their identity had nothing to do with their possessions.
In Matthew 6 Jesus said, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.”
So how could those people joyfully accept the confiscation of their stuff? Because it didn’t hurt. Their true possessions were actually in heaven.
Back to Hebrews 10:34. It says they joyfully accepted the confiscation of their property because they knew they had “better and lasting possessions.”
It’s sort of like going to play football and wearing an old ragged t-shirt from the garage. When your opponent rips your shirt, you don’t care. Back home you have plenty of shirts, better shirts. Ripping that rag-of-a-shirt doesn’t phase you. In fact, it’s kind of funny.
That’s how those people in Hebrews 10 could react joyfully when their stuff was confiscated. They said, “What? Those old rags? Take ‘em. My true possessions are in heaven. Who I am has nothing to do with what I own. My identity is secure as a child of God.”
In our materialistic society, it is so easy to get wrapped up in the stuff. We pour over catalogs and surf the web. We walk the malls looking for more. We invest so much of ourselves in our possessions, they become our treasure.
Jesus said where our treasure is, that’s where our heart is. That’s why it’s so disheartening to lose our stuff, because part of our heart goes with it.
The heart of who we are, our identity, is tied to our treasure. If our treasure is on earth, and we lose it, we lose our identity. That’s why some people kill themselves when they go broke. They see their life as worthless without their possessions.
But as a Christian, who I am has nothing to do with my stuff. If I lose it all, I will still be exactly who I am, a child of God. My identity – my heart – is where my treasure is, and it’s rock solid secure, in heaven.
Anything I have here is simply part of my stewardship, tools to be used for the Lord’s will. And if they are taken from me, well then I’ll just look around to see what other tools He’ll provide me with.
“Sounds great, Doug. Great idea. But if I lost my stuff, I’ll be honest with you, I would grieve. How can I change that?”
The first step in any change is to change your thinking.
So look at Colossians 3:2. It says, “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.”
That means, change your thinking. Change the channel in your head. Turn it from “earthly things” and set it on “heavenly things.”
As you spend more time thinking about the things of God, it will completely shift your outlook. The stuff that once seemed so important won’t seem so important anymore.
And eventually your possessions will lose their hold on you. Your stuff will have nothing to do with your identity.
Then you’ll be like the people in Hebrews 10. You could have all your possessions confiscated yet react joyfully, because who you are is a child of God, and you have far better and lasting possessions – a full treasure – in heaven.
Comments?
E-mail me: dougapple@wave94.com.
May God bless you today! With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.
© 2008 The Arrow’s Tip
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(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)
Why “The Arrow’s Tip”? Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold. Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.” I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.
Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL 32315
(850) 926-8000
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