The Whole Kit and Caboodle

It's a very strange term, and like so many in our language, I don't have a clue where I heard it first or where it came from. Sometimes, it just pops out naturally like it did the other day when I was reading and came across Psalm 117 (the shortest chapter in the Bible). I thought to myself, well that's the whole kit and caboodle. When it came out, I knew what I meant. That's short and sweet (another term I need to research) and it says everything that needs to be said. Immediately however, I thought to myself, what the heck does that even mean? So I did a little research.

"Kit" is a term that can be traced back to the 1700's and means a collection of equipment or belongs, such as a soldiers kit. Everything they need in one tidy package.

"Caboodle" is an awesome word to say and originated in the 1800's meaning the whole collection or crowd.

So while the words are somewhat redundant, together they drive home the meaning everything for everyone. Just like Psalm 117:

"Praise the Lord, all you nations. Praise him, all you people of the earth. For his unfailing love for us is powerful; the Lord's faithfullness endures forever." (Psalm 177: 1-2) 

This Psalm sums up succinctly our posture with God. Praise him, everybody, because of His unfailing, powerful, never ending faithfulness towards us. You can trust it....always. There it is. All of it.

In a conversation recently with my good friend and CPA, he ironically said "the whole kit and caboodle", which caused me to laugh because of my recent fascination with the term. Being two of the coolest nerds we know, we spent a few minutes talking about it and concluded with our own take away. We derived at everything one person needs, and everything for all people. Just like God's love. He loves us individually and as a body.

I think about that in perspective of family and teams. Each person must be honored and at the same time the entire unit must be honored and work together. If either part thinks they are too good or better than the other, it doesn't work. They must operate in harmony. All for one, one for all.

God's love covers all the nations and all the people of the earth. It never fails. We should praise Him for that by being an extension of it. That's serving others without exception. The whole kit and caboodle.