Storing the Treasure of Your Heart in Heaven

Weekly Overview:

Why should we spend time alone with God? Why is meeting with God in the secret place so important? Until we gain an understanding of the immense value and availability of encountering God, we will never consistently engage in this foundational, vital practice. As we discover God’s heart to meet with us in order that we might experience the depths of his love, I pray that your life would be marked by a new grace to consistently and powerfully encounter the living God.

Scripture: “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

Devotional:

In Matthew 6:19-21 Jesus teaches us an important spiritual principle we need to know in order to give God the entirety of our hearts. Scripture says:

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.

You are the child of a loving God who is desperately jealous for the entirety of your heart. Matthew 6:19-21 illustrates a truth that spans beyond this world and into the fullness of eternity. You and I have an opportunity in this life either to give our hearts to God and receive an eternal reward, or to give our hearts to the world, which will only lead to destruction. We can either surrender all that we are and have to the perfect, pleasing plans of our heavenly Father or seek fulfillment, pleasure, status, and wealth in that which belongs to the world alone.

The absolute best way we can ensure our lives are fully surrendered and available to the Father is to spend the first moments of our day alone with him. If we are going to make the most of this life, we must set aside time to assess our thoughts, actions, and emotions. We must make time to take an honest look at our lives and discover whether we are truly living for God or for the world. And in response to a daily assessment, we must consistently engage in the process of confession so that our lives may be empowered by the forgiveness and love of the Father.

God longs for your life here on earth to impact eternity. He is a Father who has perfect plans to bless you in ways you cannot imagine. But God cannot bless that which is not best. He cannot reward you for doing that which is destructive. Choose to center your life around meeting with God that you might store up a wealth of eternal treasure. Open your heart to the Holy Spirit every morning that he may reveal anything that’s keeping you from experiencing the fullness of life Jesus died to give you. Surrender your life to the God who has greater things in store for you than you can ask or imagine. And experience the peace and joy that comes from allowing God to have the entirety of your life to bless and fill with his glorious nearness.

Guided Prayer:

1. Meditate on the truth of God’s word. Allow Scripture to fill you with a desire to surrender your life fully to God’s plans and love.

“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

2. In what ways are you laying up treasure on earth? Where are you seeking fulfillment and provision from the world rather than God? What parts of your life are not God’s best for you?

3. Confess any sin in your life to God and take time to receive his forgiveness. God hates sin because it robs us of the fullness of life he longs to give. Once we confess our sins to him he truly forgives us. Don’t dwell on your sin, but rather on the goodness and grace of God.

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9

Oswald Chambers wrote, “Joy means the perfect fulfilment of that for which I was created and regenerated.”You were created and regenerated for unhindered communion with your heavenly Father. Experiencing true joy in this life will be the result of casting aside anything that chains your heart to this world. Live today for God alone and discover the wealth of life that comes from storing up your treasure in heaven.

Extended Reading: Ephesians 1

Facing Earthly Struggles..Lynette Kittle

 Facing Earthly Struggles

by Lynette Kittle 

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” -Ephesians 6:12

Growing up my junior high best friend, Peggy, loved professional wrestling. It was an unknown world to my sheltered pastor’s kid background. Little did I know when she invited me to watch it with her, I would be taken on an emotional roller coaster as she cheered, cried, threw herself on the floor, beat the tabletop, and shouted throughout the match.

Oh, the drama! To her, it was all so real, while I watched her and the matches in disbelief. Although I’ve heard it’s mostly staged for entertainment and wrestlers are putting on a show, to fans like Peggy it’s a real battle being fought between good and evil, Mr. Goody-Two-Shoes pitted against his Evil Nemesis.

Looking Beyond Appearances
Like many fans may be unaware of what’s really happening in pro-wrestling events, often real-life situations can be deceiving to those looking merely at the outward appearances and actions. It can seem and feel like individuals and groups coming against us are our personal enemies, however, Scripture reminds us that there is more to what’s really occurring beyond what we see, hear, feel, and experience.

Although opposition may look and feel personal, in reality, they are really opposing God and those who represent Him on earth. Most of our earthly opponents are unaware of how they are actually being played by the devil and his cohorts to go after us.

Although it’s easy to seem like our opposition just hates us, it’s much deeper than most of us and even many of them understand. There are spiritual forces behind their feelings and actions causing them to believe they are expressing their own thoughts and feelings when in truth they are being influenced by evil spiritual forces that hate God.

Like 2 Corinthians 4:4 describes, “The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”

Beyond their own comprehension, unbelievers are being used to war with God, with many being completely unaware of who is leading them in their thinking and actions.

So How Do We Successfully Face Struggles?
Often we as believers can lose sight of who is fighting us, too, causing us to start trying to wrestle on a human level. But God has called us to a higher form of defense on a spiritual level because that’s where the real scuffle is taking place. So how do we face struggles on spiritual levels from our human standpoint?

1. Prayer is our first point of defense. James 5:16, explains how the prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. Spending time in prayer is number one defense against the attacks of our spiritual enemies. As well, 1 Chronicles 5:20 describes how when some of the tribes of Israel were in combat with their enemies, God heard their cries during the battle and answered their prayers for help because they trusted in Him.

2. Praise defeats the enemy. 2 Chronicles 20:21,22 describe a battle scene where King Jehoshaphat sent men ahead of his army to sing to the Lord and praise Him for the splendor of His holiness saying, “Give thanks to the Lord, for His love endures forever.” As they began to sing and praise the Lord, God caused the enemy to begin fighting among themselves rather than attacking his army. 

Praise is a powerful line of defense in the life of every believer. Like Exodus 15:2 describes, “The Lord is my strength and my defense; He has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise Him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him.”

Spiritual Weapons Win the Battles
As Christians, what happens in the spiritual directly affects the outcome of the struggle in the physical. Protection from the enemy’s attacks comes when we trust God and turn to Him for help. Like Isaiah 54:17, assures, “’No weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and this is their vindication from Me,’ declares the Lord.”

By putting into practice God’s spiritual ways of dealing with the enemy through speaking words that come from our heart to the heart of God through prayer and praise, we will see Him move on our behalf.

Intersecting Faith & Life:
Set some time aside to look at the struggles you’ve been facing. Examine ways you can address them using the spiritual weapons God has provided.

Further Reading: 
2 Corinthians 6:4-10
2 Corinthians 10:3-6

A Prayer for the Right Pace..Ashley Moore

 A Prayer for the Right Pace 

By Ashley Moore

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.” - Hebrews 12:1, NLT

I wouldn’t call myself a runner. The longest distance I’ve ever pounded out on the asphalt was just over three miles for a run my city hosted. In an attempt to prepare, I wanted to go a little extra, ensuring that on race day, I would successfully complete the mileage required.

If I wanted to finish the race strong, I had to practice! I spent many days leading up to race day lacing up my sneakers, stretching my calves and hamstrings, and charting my course for the day. But the learning curve was steep! I would start off strong, allowing anticipation and nervous energy to fuel me. But then I’d hit a wall, emptying my energy reserves too quickly. I realized running was all about finding the right pace. 

What about you? How is your pace of life? Do your feet hit the floor every morning in a hurry to check your email and get work started so you can coast into the evenings and weekends? Or are you more of a procrastinator? Do you postpone tasks until they can no longer wait, leaving yourself and others in a frenetic crunch to meet deadlines?

For me, depending on the day and task, I fall into both extremes. But that’s what both of those categories are—extremes. And the truth is, there’s a healthy tension, or for our purposes, there’s a healthy pace. Remember the nursery rhyme about the tortoise and the hare? Slow and steady is the pace we're looking for because, as Christians, we’re playing the long game. 

In Hebrews 12:1, the writer reminded us that the Christian life is a race. And the way he instructed believers to run indicates that he wasn’t talking about a sprint but a marathon. He specifically commanded that we run with endurance. The Greek word used is hupemoné which means cheerful constancy, patient continuance, or, put simply, to wait. But why would the author tell us to run a race and, in the next breath, tell us to wait or to run patiently? 

The author knew following Jesus in a world full of temptations was going to be arduous, like running a long race.

He also spoke to those of us who are slow starters to remind us that people need to see Christ in us. We need to continuously strip off the things that keep us from running well (Hebrews 12:1). Live a simple life, but invite someone who doesn’t know Jesus to partake in your daily activities to bear witness to Christ in you. We have to hold the tension; slow and steady wins the race. 

Each of us has a race God has specifically carved out for us to run, whether we consider ourselves marathoners or not. The race won’t be an easy one all the time. We will need to train, run with endurance, and, most of all, master a sustainable pace so that we can finish strong. 

Let’s pray:

Lord, 
Thank you for the Word and how it both acknowledges the hardship we face as Christians and simultaneously offers us direction and encouragement. Jesus, as we seek to live in ways this year that honor you, I pray you would help us do so at a sustainable pace for the path you carved out for us. You know how long each of us will be on earth, and you know each and every sin, weight, struggle, and limitation that threatens to take us off course. You knit us together with gifts, talents, and stories that specifically minister to those in our spheres of influence. I pray you’ll use our efforts to run with endurance to draw others to salvation in you. Let us continue to remember the great cloud of witnesses who have run faithfully as proof that you will supply what we need to finish strong. May we run with endurance, just as those did before us, and in a way that spurs on those who come after us.
In Jesus’ name, amen. 

God’s Hammer Soften Hearts..Lynette Kittle

 God’s Hammer Soften Hearts

by Lynette Kittle

“’Is not my word like fire,’ declares the Lord, ‘and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces?’”  -- Jeremiah 23:29

Have you heard of God’s indestructible hammer as described in Jeremiah 23:29? If not, you may never have thought of God’s Word being like a powerful hammer.

The Old Testament often describes how at times, the Israelites hearts had hardened towards God. Zechariah 7:12 explains, “They made their hearts as hard as flint and would not listen to the law or to the words that the Lord Almighty had sent by His Spirit through the earlier prophets. So the Lord Almighty was very angry.”

To have an adamant or hard heart describes a person who refuses to be persuaded, who is unmovable or unshakeable in their thinking. In Scripture, it refers to the spiritual condition of a person who is rebellious towards God’s law and His words.

By describing their heart condition as hard as flint, the hardest of stones and used to cut other rocks, meant their hearts were to the point where they were too hard to receive God’s law, to be carved or receive His words.

Yet God’s hammer, His Word, is able to judge the hardest of heart. It’s able to infiltrate into the deepest part of man’s heart and bring to light true motives, thoughts, and attitudes.

His hammer is able to break the unbreakable kind of rock, to shatter man’s stubbornness and arrogance against God.

As Hebrews 4:12 describes, “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”

R.C. Sproul writes, “God’s hammer smashes not just the icons of the world around us; it also smashes the idols of my heart. It is hard, heavy, even painful, precisely because of the love of the One who wields it. He has promised to forgive me for my hard heart but has also promised to soften it.”

Ezekiel 36:26 reveals God’s desire towards men, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and you a heart of flesh.”

Like a physical hammer shatters, God’s hammer demolishes spiritual strongholds as 2 Corinthians 10:4 explains “The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.”

With God’s hammer, as 2 Corinthians 10:5 describes, “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”