Our Own Ownership

I started a venture asking a simple question...What do I truly own? Ownership means that I have full claim, authority, dominion of that which I claim is mine. Extrapolating it to the day of my demise, I come to realize that whatever I believe is really mine, I actually only possess to use while here on the planet. The absolute, long-term truth is, though I may have purchased the item, once I am gone, I am no longer capable of remaining the owner of "IT". Extrapolating further one must ask, do I even own my own life? Is it something I can possess in spite of my death?

What I have come to discover is that yes, I do own my life and the time given me to exist. We all own this present 'time'. I do have choice. I do have reason, which has been crafted within me since the day of my birth and as I continue to walk this planet we call earth. And, while not all believe in one, I do have choice with my soul, the particular being or entity which makes me uniquely me. No one is a carbon copy of anyone before. Each of us has individual characteristics that will never be duplicated in any other being. No one will ever write like your or me. No one will ever dream like your or me. No one will ever do exactly as you or me. But someone else with either own my possessions or discard them upon my earthly demise.

As I think about the bumper sticker we have all seen "He who dies with the most toys wins" my responsive bumper sticker would be "He who dies with the most toys looses the most toys". None of us will take them with us, and nothing we own, except our souls will last for eternity.

To those who don't believe we have a soul, you will someday. For when you are taken from this place, your soul removed from the body which temporarily 'holds' it, you will discover the error of your thinking. And for me, if the soul is not an entity, and upon my earthly demise I find myself nothing, even if I were to die with a few toys, I still would have lost it all, yet I know my life would account for blessing of others as I lived and breathed.

So, there remains a choice, there is something we 'own' for sure being our earthly existence and what we choose to do today. Whether you believe in God or not, each of us can choose to look for truth, and honestly, I am truly seeking to know truth. Not religion, not some conjured up human reasoning, absolute truth.

I have seen miracles. I have experienced that which defies coincidental explanation. I have prayed and seen the gamut of modes of answers to my prayers. I have listened and followed both righteous leadership and unrighteous leadership. I have worked hard to discern the difference between the two, and believe I have found a way to determine such. Have you? Where do you go for truth? Whose truth is it that drives your life? Where is the absolute goodness in your days? How has your life been essential in the quest of your soul and the soul of others?

We do own things. Our own ownership speaks volumes to our integrity and character. Our choices in each day, each moment reveals who we are and where we are heading. I am trying to use all that I own to invest in the lives of others, making our journey through this life as tolerable as possible, fully believing that what I leave behind pales significantly to what I will own in the future, beyond my life here.

What do you own? How will you use what you own today? How will your life speak of your ownership after you exit?