There’s something captivating about a good story. And while good writing helps, and a good story arc is important, it’s the characters in those stories that can truly make it compelling. Better yet, when we see the depth of who they are, we are drawn into the story being told. This is what comes to mind when I reflect on our passage this week from the “Sermon on the Mount.”
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also (Matthew 6:19-21).”
As Pastor Mike mentioned, and as I would echo, it’s the last part of that passage that often grabs us, “…where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” This statement is as audacious as it is convicting. For many of us, our main treasure is likely connected to our money or our possessions. Knowing this, I can’t help but ask questions like: Am I using earthly treasures for heavenly purposes? What sort of return from those “treasures” am I reaping? Does my investment with my treasures help me become more like Christ? Am I deepening and enriching the relationships in my life? Am I joining what is going on in my community—our local church—to reach the people that need it the most? Or am I using my “treasure” to simply add more to my life that moth and rust will destroy?
These are all questions I ask myself often.
While Paul tells us that “the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil” in 1 Timothy 6:10, money itself can be a privilege and opportunity to bless many, many people when we invest it in the right places. And when we invest that money in places like Harvest Christian Church, and its related areas of ministry, we’re joining with what the Holy Spirit is already doing ahead of us as we put those “treasures” into the opportunities and people that last and have eternal value in the eyes of our God who created us. And believe me; better yet, believe what God’s Word says when He speaks through one of His prophets in Malachi 3:10, “Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the LORD of hosts, if it will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need.”
Our rewards for our charitable giving may not always come in financial form, but God promises us it will bring unmatched blessing—something that glorifies Him. We can become the characters that bring to life the grand story the Lord is writing right here and now in our very own church family… a story that will endure forever.
“And I heard a voice from heaven saying, ‘Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.’ ‘Blessed indeed,’ says the Spirit, ‘that they may rest for from their labors, for their deeds follow them!’” –Revelation 14:13
Thanks for being a part of the Harvest Christian Church Community. We’ll see you soon.
QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF …
1. Where am I investing my time, talent and treasures this week?
2. Who can I connect with this week? And do they have a need I can help with?
3. What kind of legacy do I want to leave?
4. Where is it right now the Holy Spirit wants to grow me? And am I willing to allow Him to do His work within me?
