Pick Up and Move On

 

I spent the day in and around New Orleans with some of our youth from the church. We went to Jackson Square, ate beignets, looked at the river and made our way to Lafitte to experience a swamp tour. It was a truly awesome day. And, of course, we ate some great food. It was New Orleans, so why wouldn’t we?

We had the best tour guide imaginable, a true and proud Cajun named T. Earl. He was a mountain of a man, making me feel small as I passed by boarding the boat. He had both great knowledge and great stories. He was delightful as we learned about the swamp and alligators, and through his words we caught a glimpse of a very different life than we know.

Along the way, we saw this interesting sight - a house moving down the bayou. The owner sat on the front porch for the ride as the boat pushed his house - lock, stock and barrel - to another location. Just pick up and move on; that is what this image brought to mind. Time to move on. No regrets.

The scriptures often speak of pulling up stakes and moving on. Abraham and Sarah. Moses and the Hebrew slaves. Fishermen and tax collectors and others who heard the call to “follow me”. Jesus said to not get too settled in this world, to take no thought for things over which we have little or no control. We should not worry about how much money was in our pocket or what clothes we had to pack. In fact, Jesus said that “foxes have holes and birds have nests but that the Son of Man had no place to lay his head.” Jesus traveled light and fast, tied more to the Spirit than to the world.

This strange sight was a good reminder for us to travel light and not be too attached to this world. We want to be able to go where the Spirit leads, any time, any place.

Peace.