By Jessica Brodie

Do you have certain items with a sentimental meaning, items you keep around mostly because of that?

I certainly do. While minimalism appeals to me in many ways, especially in the home, there are items that bring me so much joy because of the memories they evoke—my Grammy’s teacups collection, which now take up residence in my home. The necklace my dad gave me just before he passed away. Trésor perfume, which never fails to remind me of my aunt. The vintage typewriters my husband found me, and the heart necklace he gave me when we were dating. His Nana’s Scottish tartan skirt, and a few special pieces of jewelry and artwork that were hers.

These items are special to me because of the people they represent. They’re a tangible, visual symbol of love and relationship, a love that still exists despite the passage of time and even, in many cases, despite the fact that many of these loved ones passed away, some not too long ago.

Recently, my husband’s other grandma—Grandma Mary—passed away. At age 101, Grandma Mary had been born in a Mill Village lumber camp in West Virginia in 1923 and was the oldest of seven siblings, and she worked from a young age to help support her family. It wasn’t an easy life, yet she found true love and joy when she married her husband, “Red,” and they moved to Wooster, Ohio, where they founded the successful W. B. Armstrong oil and gas drilling company and raised three children… one of them my amazing mother-in-law. After cancer took Grandpa Red far too soon—before his grandkids could meet him—Grandma found true love and joy once more in her forty-plus-year marriage to Grandpa Bob before he, too, passed away. (You can check out Grandma Mary’s obituary here.)

I adored Grandma Mary. I’ve never met anyone who didn’t, truly. She was funny, faithful, warm, smart, and incredibly hardworking. She loved flowers and birds and people, and she welcomed me into the family with open arms.

When we all went to Ohio for her funeral recently, almost the entirety of the family gathered, some as far away as Hawaii, Oregon, and California, not to mention our crew from South Carolina. It was a beautiful thing to see so many people gather in memory of a family’s matriarch. All of us who loved her, even in-laws and “steps,” were invited to take some items from her home, and we gladly did.

As we gathered last week for Thanksgiving, it was especially heartfelt, as my husband and I set our table with china that had been Grandma Mary’s, and he set up his annual Christmas village on the sideboard with a few pieces that had been hers. I wore one of her colorful blouses, and my daughter wore one of the sweater sets Grandma loved so much.

Looking around the table, it occurred to me … things can never truly represent a person, ever. There’s no special “power” they have, no magic or supernatural memory held within. It’s the same thing with the Christian symbols I wear. That cross around my neck isn’t there because I believe it holds special protection. At the end of the day, it’s a tiny piece of gold in a shape—that’s it. Yet it still holds meaning for me because of what it represents. When I wear that cross, I’m proclaiming, “I follow Jesus. Jesus is my savior. I believe!”

Just like when I wear Grandma Mary’s blouse… or sip tea from my Grammy’s teacup, or dot Trésor on my wrist … I’m saying, “I remember. I loved these people. And I miss them so.”

The Bible warns us against idols. Exodus 20:4-5 expressly forbids us from making, or worshipping or serving, idols of any kind. But idols and sentimental items are two different things. I certainly don’t worship the sentimental items I own, even though they bring me joy when I wear or look at them, for they remind me of a special person or time in my life.

God encouraged the Israelites to make the tabernacle during their time in the wilderness. Constructed according to God's instructions using precious materials like gold and fine linen, the tabernacle served as a physical representation of God’s presence among God’s people. The tabernacle wasn’t God, certainly. But it helped the people have an actual, physical representation to help focus and encourage their worship. Even before this, the Bible tells us God used a symbol with his people. Genesis 8-9 tells us that after the flood, God vowed that he would never again destroy all living creatures (Genesis 8:21). As he said in Genesis 9:13, “I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth” (NIV).

Sometimes, symbols help remind us of the deep love that exists between people.

Let us remember that love is the most important part of our human experience.

As Scripture tells us:

“Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.”—1 John 4:8

“If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.”— 1 Corinthians 13:1-3

“We love because he first loved us.”— 1 John 4:19

“Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.”— Matthew 22:37-39

Let us love, now and always, in God’s holy and precious name.

A prayer: Lord, thank you for the great love you have for the world and for each one of us. You loved us so much you sent your only son to die for us and show us the path to eternal life with you. Help us to love each other and honor your love as we strive to love others. In your holy and precious name I pray, Amen.