A Cluttered In-Box

In the past few days my email has been flooded with announcements of my winnings. If my guess is right, I will soon pass Bill Gates as the richest man in the world. It must be winter time everywhere for the idiots that send these things out – THEY HAVE NOTHING TO DO…

In a quick calculation I have just passed the US $1 Million mark in a three day stretch. That is averaging over $300,000 US per day.

The funny thing is that I have done NOTHING to earn this privilege that I am being offered. And in another way of thinking, I have done nothing to deserve that my In-Box in all my email programs is filling with this junk mail. But full it is – every hour and every day.

In one of my email programs there is a File labeled “Spam” (– someone told me that it was named after a can of meat?) This File will fill with unwanted emails at about four to ten per hour. What a lot of Junk. If I don’t get back to check my email for a few days – it is possible to have 90 to 150 Junk emails in this file.

This particular program is my Gmail account. It has a rather funny statement when you click to clear the Spam file. It says, “Hooray, no spam here!” Even the machine feels good about this junk being gone.

Oh – I understand all to well how this happens. There are people that search the entire Web sifting through the whole for potential email addresses. There are programs that do all the sifting for the owners and others that simply create random email addresses. If the emails they send bounces back it is immaterial. For every one that does bounce thousands get through to someone’s computer. That doesn’t even account for the people that sell my email address as part of a greater list.

Enough “Techie Talk”… so what do I do? I delete. I love clicking on that delete button… it zaps these idiots into no where! It feels good.

As I sat pondering this new clutter in my life and machine I have become aware of a personal fact. My life can become like my computer. It has an In-Box and so does my mind. As my In-Box will fill with garbage so does my mind. As my full In-Box slows my computer – so does my full mind slow my person.

It is a simple thought – too much Junk inside will incapacitate the system. It needs a complete purging from time to time.

In the computer I can do that with a click of the button – in my life it should be easy but often is a little more difficult than just pushing “Delete”. We need a ‘cleansing’.

In the Bible there are many references to cleansing in the Old Testament. Obeying the laws of cleansing for the Hebrew people was very important to their blessed life as they followed God. This cleansing that was needed was not only for the outside of the body but also for the sin on the inside. It was needed for a whole life.

Back to our Computers for a minute…
If you have taken a peek at some of the Spam that comes your way (like a I do) – you will find all kinds of things offered… things that I will avoid writing about here… as it will generate a response that I do not need. Simply stated there is ALL KINDS OF JUNK loaded my way.

Our lives and minds are like that too. I have piles of thoughts(Junk) that get in the way of going forward. There are piles of ‘Worry thoughts’ sitting beside lopsided piles of ‘Fearful thoughts’. The ‘Vengeful thoughts’ are dumped over by the ‘Anger thoughts’. The ‘Hate thoughts’ keep fallen over when I restack the ‘Love thoughts’ and ‘Peaceful thoughts’. The ‘Warm Fuzzy thoughts’ get dragged forward at times and then squashed with ‘Doubt thoughts’.

I want to scream – “My mind looks like my garage – full of junk that I don’t need! WHAT DO I DO ABOUT IT?”

It is at that moment that the Lord stops in and whispers the answer… “Nothing… I will take care of it if you come to see me. I take care of piles of Junk. Just call me.”

There is a small success story that began with one man in Western Canada. You will see the advertisement as “1-800-GOT-JUNK” – for a small fee they come and take away what you don’t need anymore.

This company was not the first to do this – God was. Jesus said it this way….(in two different translations…

Matthew 11:28 (KJV)

Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Matthew 11:28 (New International Version)
28"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

Notice the KJV says ‘labour and are heavy laden’ and the NIV states ‘weary and burdened’.

Does that describe your life? It pretty much wraps up mine.

But the wonderful thought that Jesus leaves with us is the final phrase, “I will give you rest.”

~ Pastor Murray Lincoln ~

A Prayer…
Dear God,
Today I ask you to come and help clear this weary “In-Box” of mine. I am tired of fighting with these angry thoughts and hateful thoughts. I need you to straighten up the doubtful thoughts and then take them away. I offer you the key to my home and ask you to back the biggest truck you have into my life’s driveway and get rid of this old, ugly, smelly, cobweb collected stuff. Please God just take all the Junk away.

God, I already feel the difference knowing that you will begin now to do the work.

And by the way the Lord, on the set of keys for my life, there are three smaller keys that unlock the three back rooms that have some terrible thoughts in there that I can’t stand anymore. I want all of it gone. You have access to all of me – starting today, starting now.

In Jesus name I ask it.
Amen.