Dave's Deep Thoughts

Here's Pastor Dave McDowell's weekly devotional that he sends out to members of his church. Dave is my brother and serves as the Music Minister at Stewartstown UMC in PA.

It has garnered the stares of cashiers
It has captivated the attention of store clerks.
It has amazed businessmen, and entrepreneurs.

No it's not my dashing good looks.

I am speaking of my wallet.

Rarely a day goes by that someone
doesn't remark about my unusual man purse.

Isn't it time for a new wallet?
or
You walk around with that thing?
or
If you are hard up for cash buddy, I can loan you some cash

It began as a tribute to the memory of my dad,
who was never eager to purchase a new wallet,
(or any other personal item for that matter)
when the old one worked just fine.

I think of him every time I reach for the debit card.

This would be the man who wore a leisure suit
10 years after they went out of style.


But there is another side to the ridicule that I receive daily.

It' s also about the number of items that I have
carefully stored inside it.

I also receive comments such as

What all do you have in that thing?
or
Why not buy a European hand bag? It would be less embarrassing....
or
What? Can't you afford to rent a storage unit?

I've been charged for extra baggage at airports because of it.

Homeless people, at times, have offered to buy me a hot dog.

The good news is that I have never been pick pocketed.

There is probably an unspoken rule among thieves
not to steal anything from a pocket that weighs over 10 lbs.


No I am proud of my wallet.
It is a testament to family frugality,
and perhaps to my closeted nature as a pack rat.

I am often encouraged by friends who care,
to schedule a day to houseclean day my wallet.

And so one day,
to prove them wrong
and to avoid a group intervention,
I decided to clean out my wallet.

Beyond the usual credit, debit & insurance cards
these are some of the things that I found.....

a photo of a 3rd world child that I sponsor
(shouldn't be any haters for that one)

a reminder note (that looks at least 7 years old) to call Sue asap
(I know at least 7 women named Sue)

a membership card from a video store in California
(I live on the east coast)

a gift card for a book store that closed 10 years ago
(maybe it will work on e bay)

a key to who knows what......

a card for a free appetizer at a popular chain restaurant
(you never know when you are going to be in the mood for a bloomin' onion)

individual credit cards to 8 stores that I have only been to once

a free pass to play miniature golf
(Hey! it's not easy to get that hole-in-one on the 19th hole)

a key card to some hotel room
(I wonder if it will still work....)

and finally,

my drivers license
which is barely clinging on to dear life
in it's shredded plastic pocket.

Okay, so maybe I do carry around some excess baggage.
And perhaps I need to accept change more easily.

Most of us are guilty of those things.

Excess baggage only bogs us down.
and refusing to change with the times doesn't prevent change from happening.

These are things that in the long run, cause us needless anxiety.

Jesus spoke of such anxiety.
The word anxiety that He used in the Gospel of Matthew
translates best in English as "mental strangulation".

So the next time you want to hold on to
something from the past,
remember who the One holds the keys to your future.

The next time you want to resist change
for fear of the unknown,
remember the One who knows everything
and has promised to be faithful to us.

As for my wallet,
yeah, I am going out and purchasing a new one.
As for the leisure suit,
I'd prefer if you can't say anything good about it,
that you say nothing at all.

And which of you by being anxious,
can add a single day to your life? Matthew 6:27

.