Revisiting Stuff and Junk as they relate to life, but in this case what goes on inside of us. It's like I once told a friend (and shared here before) in this analogy: People are shrimpboats. What you see on the surface is the serene picture of a boat peacefully moving making hardly a wave, but underneath, there is a large net hauling both Stuff (good seafood to eat) and Junk (literally Junk in the form of sea life that could cause harm, Junk left on the floor of the sea, and other things).
All of us carry Stuff and Junk that we've accumulated over a lifetime. The Stuff are the useful things: learnings, teachings, faith, and other areas that serve us well. The Junk are those painful items, those things we bury deep in our lives hoping to never see again. Unlike the Stuff and Junk from the recent devotion, it isn't as easy as keeping an inventory and hiring someone to come remove that Stuff or Junk, yet they both can be very difficult to let go of. Sometimes, it even requires professional help to begin to deal with the Stuff, but mostly Junk, that we have in tow behind us under the surface that we've accumulated over a lifetime.
In Galatians 6, Paul tells us to be there for one another to help get rid of the Junk. "Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ."
Pray that we have the relationships necessary for people to know they can share when they have burdens. Pray that we listen and seek wisdom to help a brother through the burden he bears through prayer, through possible sweat and labor if the burden is a physical need, or through guiding him to the right help if it is an emotional or mental need. Pray that the Spirit give us the tools necessary to be there and to be of help should a need arise.
Hope Men's Ministry
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