My stuff is not my stuff

One of the most difficult truths to apply to our lives is that our stuff is not really ours, it all belongs to God. In Christian circles, we say this all the time, but our actions tell a different story. We spend our entire lives protecting our stuff. We're like a little kid hovering over his share of the candy with his arms wrapped wide around his pile and looking over his shoulder to spot any intruder that might be coming to take his stuff.

We protect our stuff at all costs...Here is a real life example...
Walt and I were out yesterday filming people on the street. Our question..."Do you think Christians are generous?" We stopped by a gas station and approached a man(his name was Willie) and asked him if we could ask him a question on camera. He said, "No way! I'm on house arrest(as he pointed to the electronic leash on his ankle) and I need to stay on the straight and narrow!" He must've thought we were the secret parole agents spying on him or something! Anyway, I asked him why he was on house arrest. He said, "I popped a homeless guy for trying to break into my car to steal some change." I quickly clarified that by "popped" he meant "hit" and not "shot". He said, "yeah I hit him". So rather than film him, I asked him if I could pray for him. He said, "sure!" I gave him a starbucks gift card with my phone number and told him to call me if he needed to talk.

I don't think Willie reacted much differently than we react when it comes to protecting our stuff. Ok, maybe he went a little off the deep end, but we all have tend to have a strong "protection mechanism" built in that senses an intruder. When I let the truth that my stuff is not my stuff sink deep within my heart, I begin to ask myself the question, "how does Jesus want me to react to these types of situations?"

Luke 6:27-36 is clear...be generous...your reward will come later, and it will be great!