I’m a last minute packer. So naturally I found myself shoving everything I could find into my suitcase just two hours before I had to leave. Oh and in case you didn’t know, I was packing for two weeks in a third-world country– including a hike through the jungle.
There aren’t many things you don’t want to take to a third-world country. Anything that could possibly make me more comfortable ended up on the packing list. And my mom, she was making things even worse. She was trying to get me to pack our entire medicine cabinet/every first-aid item we have. Sorry mom, but I don’t need three different types of eardrops, a two-year-old bottle of cough syrup, and a stethoscope (thanks for the thought though).
Well I eventually realized that I could not pack the entire contents of my room and I should only take the bare-necessities (which ended up being like 70 pounds worth of luggage). I had to leave behind a few things that made me feel comfortable. I didn’t get to bring everything I might take with me on a day-to-day basis in America. All of that stuff would have bogged me down and I would have become ineffective. Me not working at my full capacity would have slowed down the entire team and hurt the mission– which would be unacceptable. So after I pack everything I need, leaving behind all of the extra stuff, we eventually head off to the airport.
As I was sitting in the terminal waiting to board I realized I had still brought along baggage I didn’t need. But it wasn’t physical items– it was spiritual and emotional baggage I left packed away. I wouldn’t be very useful if I brought along all of my stress and worry, or pride and bitterness. I had to leave it because I knew I couldn’t leave with it.
There’s so much stuff we carry around everyday that we just don’t need to take with us. It’s nice to leave these things behind for a little while, even if I’m at the spiritual and emotional baggage claim in a few weeks picking them up again. Maybe one day I’ll actually be able to hand them over to Jesus and He’ll put them on a plane that crashes somewhere on a deserted island where I’ll never see them again. But until then my friends, pack light and you will travel far.