F R E E

Does the ownership of your accumulated material possessions stress you out?
Do you live with a lot of clutter? Are your closets full?
We've been in our new house for 4 years now. When we moved, we came from our "starter" home.
I thought I had a lot of stuff then, but then we moved here, one extra bedroom, a larger basement, a huge garage (my husband needed a place to store his materials since he's an Electrician).
Everything that felt huge when we first moved in is suddenly full. We accumulated more "stuff" and now, I feel as though we are running out of space.

Some time ago, I began selling clothes and house items at local resale shops. I still do. I make an appointment, bring in a huge bin of items, and come home with about 40% of the items I started with. The stores can take some of this "stuff" off my hands, but they can't take everything, and then it leaves me with, what do I do with it now? Sell it on my own? Donate it? But where??? All of these things I think about because I made a choice to purchase something I "needed".

We started a financial course years ago, and it was suggested we try to sell everything we don't need. In turn we would raise money to throw at any debt we had.

It was a great idea in theory. Selling items can be quite a task, almost like a job! Have you tried it?? Yes, facebook groups sure makes it easy. Often times you post an item for sale, set it on your porch and the consumer picks it up while leaving money at the door. It's great! When. it. works. :) Some items, people don't buy. And then goes on the process. What do I do with it now?? Donate? But where??

Have you noticed, if you offer something for free at the curb, someone will pick it up 99.9999% of the time?

One of my favorite quotes is "No one has ever become poor by giving" by the beautifully insightful Anne Frank. 

Yes, selling items you don't need is a great way to "recycle" some of the money you've invested in those items. However, there is something that happens inside of us when we simply give something away, without expectation of anything in return.

Something happens on the heart level. We become a little more like Jesus. There is a little more generosity in this world. A little less ownership of material possessions. A little more trust that our Father will provide for our needs as they arise.

The truth is, these items we posses, they aren't truly ours anyway. We've been blessed with the funds to purchase them. We've been blessed with the work that provided the funds. It's not ours. So why do we carry so much pride in our materials?
Why do we stress over keeping what we don't need? For fear we may need it someday and not have it?

I'm suggesting today, that you look at what you have, and see perhaps how those items could bless someone else, with no baggage attached. No expectations, no price tag, just give it away for free.

In return, you have a little more FREE-dom in your heart :)