The gray dumpster appears to squat toward you menacingly when the elevator doors whoosh open. It's definitely industrial sized. Apparently we’ve needed the capacity, as we have filled it more than once.
Up there on the 10th floor, the last of us are getting ready to move out of our offices into a new building. That means stuff has to be sorted, traded and tossed.
As someone who struggles with near-clinical dumpster diving tendencies, I sense my pulse spiking every time I saunter past the dumpster So it should come as no surprise that I can offer a fairly detailed account of its current contents.
Some of it is obviously dated media junk—stuff that has previously been digitally transferred: reel to reel tapes, cassettes, old DAT media (Digital Audio Tapes). Imagine my surprise upon discovering pieces of an old logo that used to adorn our wall.
Then there’s the other stuff, a surprising—if not eclectic—collection. I’ve seen old music CDs, well used Knick knacks, photos, framed posters, food storage containers and more.
Now I can hardly condemn those who’ve thrown away these things. Most all of them are fairly worn. And my wife assures me I would do well to learn how to throw out junk with more regularity. She’s right. Still, it’s a bit strange. Process this with me:
We give our time to get money.
We give our money to get stuff.
Then we toss that stuff into a dumpster.
Of course, nothing lasts forever. And there’s no moral law against parting with things you no longer need (again, while not a professional hoarder, I have room for growth here!). Yet for some of us—not necessarily my office mates—the relatively small gap between items purchased and items trashed conjures a sense of almost direct-to-dumpster living. We buy and toss, buy and toss—almost literally throwing away our money.
Surely a biblical stewardship demands we assess the ledger of our lives to make sure we don’t invest too much in disposables and too little in imperishables. Jesus cautions, “Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys” (Matt 6:19). But ultimately, He leaves the decision to you and to me.
Treasure in heaven—or direct-to-dumpster living. What will it be?