Oblation

“Through the Spirit, Christ offered himself as an unblemished sacrifice, freeing us from all those dead-end efforts to make ourselves respectable, so that we can live all out for God.” (Hebrews 9:14 MSG)

As the seasons change, I rotate the clothes hanging in my closet. In the spring, I put away the heavy coats and thick long pants and bring out the summer dresses and shorts. In the autumn, I do the reverse. During this biannual ritual, I routinely toss anything that does not fit or is out of style in a donation bag. This year, I noticed that most of the clothes I brought out in March never got used. I suddenly realized I have more clothes than I need. There was a flaw in the criteria that I had been using to sort through my stuff. I was getting rid of some old clothes to make room for new purchases. I kept things I still liked and donated things I had outgrown. I decided I wanted to be more thoughtful when giving things away.  

I acknowledged that I had accumulated a lot of stuff. At the time of purchase, these things gave me pleasure and made me feel relevant. I realized that this was facetious. My dead-end efforts to make myself respectable led nowhere. I felt a sense of contrition about my lifestyle of consumption. Thus, I went through my possessions as an act of self-oblation. Along with my unnecessary clothing, I surrendered my values, desires, motives, and attitudes to God. I divested many of my attachments and distractions. In the subsequent emptiness, I listened. Here is what I heard: Self-abandonment is a precursor to experiencing the abundance of God.