What to Hold Lightly; What to Hold Tightly

by Kenneth Westby

“Our lives are filled with our things and also our hopes and dreams. On some we have a tight grip, others we hold loosely if at all. How we hold on to the things and hopes of life largely determine the direction our lives take. Sadly, many people, maybe most people, live inverted lives, holding the wrong things tightly while holding the most important things lightly, if holding them at all.

An ambitious farmer was having one bumper crop after another. Things were good and he was prospering beyond that of other farmers. He needed to expand his operation, to farm more land, to build new and bigger barns for his land’s bountiful production. He was already counting his money and looking to a well-provided and secure future, an early retirement and years of ease eating, drinking and making merry.

Then, out of the blue, he heard the most shocking news of his life: God said, “You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?” One can imagine a heart attack, a terrible accident, or a deadly assault by robbers. Suddenly, all his cherished accumulations from a life of hard work taken from him in a minute. He held tightly what he should have been holding but lightly.

Does this story seem familiar? It should. Jesus told it in parabolic form two thousand years ago (read the parable in Luke 12:13-21)….”

(this article is an excerpt from the March-April 2015 edition of the Sabbath Sentinel)

To read the rest of this article, which starts on page 4, click this link: https://biblesabbath.org/media/TSS_2015_March-April-LowRes.pdf