MONDAY DEVOTION: TREASURE

-CoNnEcT- A person who dresses in black is labeled Goth. The person who has a temper is just a jerk. The kid who smells is too gross to bathe. The chubby person is just lazy. The person who is sexually involved is called a slut. The annoying guy is dubbed “stupid.” The smart aleck is suddenly the cool one. The quiet person is the snob. The friendly ones are freaks.

When someone took the time to look at these people’s lives, to examine their MYSPACE accounts and visit their bedrooms and ask questions about their behaviors, they found out the real truth:

-The guy in black was raised in a Satanist home and though he doesn’t believe it, he is forced to wear the colors of darkness.
-The one with the temper was abused and abandoned by his parents leaving him hurt and angry and desperate to defend himself from anyone else who might try to hurt him.
-That nasty smelling kid in class isn’t just gross…he lives in a poor family and they have to save money by limiting water and electricity use. Besides, no one really taught him how to care about himself.
-The lazy one who is a little chubby turns out not to be so lazy…he happens to have an illness that is treated with medication that causes major weight gain.
-And although the “slut” is involved with a variety of people, she can’t figure out how to act or respond to sexual advances because her uncle has raped her since she was a child.
- The stupid kid actually does have a learning disability and the others who have to live with the smart aleck remarks are just trying to make themselves feel powerful. -The silence of the quiet one isn’t of a snob, but of a person who fears being rejected and mocked by the loud ones.
-Those friendly kids are “too friendly” because no one was ever nice to them and they don’t want anyone to know how bad that feels.

These people hold tight to the pain in their lives, and it reflects in the things they say and do.

-ReFlEcT- Read Matthew Chapter 6
Key verses: 19-21

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Jesus is teaching his followers a variety of messages in this chapter. Specifically here, he is pointing out that there are plenty of things that we love in this life. All around us are items and tools that we would love to have, but that in the end will not exist. The cool games, phones and I-pods won’t make it with us to heaven. All the items we hope to own: cars, homes and cash…none of it will last forever. Our stuff will break or get stolen, it will expire or start to cost too much.

-DiReCt- The lesson is to begin to focus on the things that really matter in life. No one can steal your love. Rust cannot deteriorate peace of mind. Animals cannot destroy solid relationships. There are deep levels of love and commitment to God and others that are far more important than any material goods we could have. But when we focus on other things, we begin to be consumed. Not just our actions, but our entire being gets caught up in the stupid little things in life that don’t really matter. We refuse to speak to our parents because we are mad they gave us a curfew. Or maybe we end a friendship because a person takes our favorite belonging. We all find ourselves focused on the things that shouldn’t matter.

And Jesus reminds us that “where your treasure is, there your heart is also.”

They way we act, the things we say, property we own and friends we choose all reflect where our treasure is. Our heart, the core of our being, demonstrates what is most important to us. And according to the Bible, we had better have our treasure based in God, or we have got nothing!

The people in our opening thoughts are people who had reasons for their behaviors. They are people who have been hurt and whose pain and experience drastically shape who they are. The same is true for each of us. We all have things that have helped shape us that we cannot control. Then again, there are many areas in our lives where we can control and demonstrate what is at the heart of who we are. Even in the midst of bad, painful and difficult tissues, we can allow Jesus to be our treasure so that he is reflected in all we do. When we finally learn that, it will be clear to everyone else around us what really matters to us.

-Where would you say your “treasure” in life is? (God? Sports? Family? Possessions?)
-Does the amount of time you spend there reflect that? (How much time do you spend in one area vs. other important things?)
-Do your actions and words show what you want to be committed to?
-If we are committed to Jesus as our treasure, then is our heart really there? (list the ways you know that your heart is sold out to Christ)

-What is one thing you could do to clearly demonstrate that your heart and treasure are in heavenly things and not what will fade away?

God, thank you for giving us your love that will last forever. Please help us to learn how to keep you as the most important treasure in our lives. There are plenty of things that we love, but we wantt o love you most of all. Help us to learn how to show that you are the thing we love most, by giving you our time, talent, and actions. We know that you are the only thing that will endure forever. Thank you for creating us as your greatest treasure and for showing us that by sending Jesus to die for our sins. We love you. Amen.