Are You Living Temporarily or Eternally?

What is your attitude toward the things you own? How much of your life is spent working to earn money, buying things, maintaining them, upgrading them, organizing them, protecting them, and worrying about them?

There is nothing wrong with working hard or enjoying God’s blessings. But have you ever stopped to ask yourself, Am I living like this world is my home, or am I living with eternity in mind?

Temporary vs Eternal

If someone watched how you spent your time, money, energy, and attention, would they conclude you were preparing for eternity or simply building a more comfortable life here? That’s a question worth asking because, if we’re honest, most of us naturally drift toward accumulating more and more, often forgetting how temporary it all really is.

That thought hit me when I read these words:

“Nebuchadnezzar took all the treasures from the Temple of the Lord and from the palace. He cut up all the gold objects Solomon king of Israel had made for the Temple of the Lord. This happened as the Lord had said it would.” (2 Kings 24:13 NCV)

That verse made me stop. Solomon spent seven years building the Temple (1 Kings 6:38), then another thirteen years building his palace (1 Kings 7:1). Over the years the Temple was filled with magnificent gold furnishings, bronze pillars, shields, utensils, and treasures beyond imagination. The finest craftsmen in Israel devoted years of their lives creating something that seemed as though it would last forever.

Yet nearly four hundred years later, Nebuchadnezzar walked into Jerusalem and carried much of it away. What had taken decades to build disappeared in a matter of days. It made me wonder if Solomon ever thought about how temporary all of it really was. The answer is yes.

The Long View

Near the end of his life Solomon wrote, “I hated everything I had worked for under the sun, because I must leave it to someone who comes after me. Who knows if that person will be wise or foolish? But he will own everything I worked for with my wisdom…” (Ecclesiastes 2:18-19 NCV).

After accomplishing more than almost anyone who has ever lived, Solomon realized something every one of us eventually will. We never really own anything. We simply manage it for a little while before someone else does.

The Vacuum Cleaner

That truth became incredibly personal for me when my sister was diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer. Wendy and I immediately went to Orlando to spend time with her. The amazing thing was that she looked completely normal. If you had met her that day, you never would have imagined she had only thirty-one days left to live. Three weeks later she was so weak she could barely speak.

One afternoon I was helping around the house and rolled her vacuum cleaner into the garage, thinking I was getting it out of the way. She immediately became anxious and frustrated, said, “That goes in the closet!” I wheeled it back inside, and put it where she wanted it.

As I walked away, I remember thinking, why is someone who is dying worried about where the vacuum cleaner goes? Thirty-one days after her diagnosis, she was gone. Today, I have no idea where that vacuum cleaner is.

A Different Way Of Thinking

That moment has stayed with me and here I am telling you. I’m not trying to be Mr. Got-it-together, but after cancer, leukemia, watching my family and friends die unexpectedly, I don’t worry about things that won’t matter next month, let alone one hundred years from now. I don’t spend emotional energy protecting temporary things while neglecting eternal ones.

Solomon eventually found the proper balance. He wrote, “People should eat and drink and enjoy the results of their hard work, because these are gifts from God.” (Ecclesiastes 3:13 NCV).

God isn’t against possessions or valuing other things. He’s against possessions and appearance becoming our treasure.

Enjoy what He has given you. Work hard. Be thankful. Take care of what He’s entrusted to you. Just remember that it all belongs to Him, and one day it will belong to someone else.

Think about staying in a beautiful hotel. You enjoy the room, appreciate it, and take care of it, but you don’t spend thousands of dollars remodeling it because you know you’re checking out.

The Eternal Perspective

Scripture says we’re strangers and foreigners here. This world isn’t our permanent home, yet sometimes we live as though we’re decorating a place we’ll occupy forever.

Jesus said, “Don’t store treasures on earth, where moths and rust can destroy them, and where thieves can break in and steal them. Store your treasures in heaven… Your heart will be where your treasure is.” (Matthew 6:19-21 NCV).

Conclusion

So let me ask you one last question. Does the way you spend your time, your money, your energy, and your attention resemble someone who believes this world is home, or someone who knows they’re just passing through? One day someone else will wear your clothes, drive your vehicle, live in your house, and own nearly everything you’ve worked so hard to accumulate.

The only investment you’ll never leave behind is the one you made for the Kingdom of God. What’s that look like in your and my life?

GOD, help me keep a balance. Take the trip, but know it could be my last. Take care of my body, but know it dying day by day. Own the stuff, but it will belong to someone else soon enough. Even my wife, one day in heaven, we won’t be married. Help me remember, I’m just passing through. Help me be a good steward of the blessing you give me, but please - never let me forget my true home is with you. IJNIP amen ♥️

(Our First TN home - don’t own this anymore - traded truck - and the Airstream was totaled in a hail storm)