Sometimes things break. It is part of everyone's reality from the crazy-rich celebrity stars of our time down to the poorest of the poor...things here on earth do not last forever...everything will break...wear out...get old...or die. "Great way to start off the day, so upbeat Amanda...I'm not reading the rest of this" you are thinking...Sorry, you are right, but in thinking about this this morning, I was actually being encouraged...while everything on earth will perish, God and His family are eternal.

Eternity is such a foreign concept. Forever seems impossible...yet throughout scripture, God promises a place with Him in eternity for those who obey his commands. This is much more than "good news", this is exceptional news!...the kind of news that makes one dance and sing...the kind of news that you share with everyone you can...amazing, wondrous news...

While those of us who belong to Christ should be sharing this gift of eternal freedom with everyone we meet, many of us don't say a word. It's like finding a cave filled with priceless jewels and keeping it all for yourself, camouflaging the entrance so no one else can come in...it's like winning 30 new cars and keeping them all on your lawn with "do not touch" signs on them, and practically hiring guards to keep people away from "your stuff". Who can wear more than a few jewels?...who can drive more than one car?...What is wrong with us? Don't we remember what life was like before we knew the truth, before we encountered the good news? Don't we care about our family , our friends, our "neighbors"?

I remember. I do. I had so much, and yet I had nothing of value at all... nothing that wasn't always losing it's sheen or beginning to show signs of rust...nothing that wasn't sickly and dying.

The biggest problem other than being a "quiet" Christian, is when we show the world through our actions and reactions that the news isn't so "good". When things break down and you break down along with them, you show the world that you don't trust God to help you. As His children, we are responsible to "show" the world, as well as to tell the world of God's goodness. Actions speak louder than words, and if your friends and neighbors see you freak out every time that an unexpected bill comes your way or your car breaks down, what kind of witness  do you have for God's provision?

What has happened in the body of Christ that only the minority stand firm? It is the few who trust in God. It is the weak who are strong, the children who are wise?

That's the way it is...even the bible says that only a few will actually find the way to God. The way is limited...the way is steep and narrow and difficult. The way requires your carrying a cross (they tend to be awkward, heavy and cumbersome) and following Jesus (this means following, not leading...we rather like to be in charge)

Do you like nice things? Jesus has something nicer if you put your stuff down you will have open hands to receive it. Do you like to be in charge because it makes you feel secure? Jesus says that the only real security comes from letting Him rule. Do you like treasures and shiny trinkets? Jesus says that the only treasure that lasts is the treasure we store up in heaven (the things that we do unselfishly for His kingdom and do these things in obedience to His ways)

"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." - Matthew 6:19-21

It's difficult to convince someone with designer clothes and diamond jewels who drives a luxury car, that they are poor. It's just as difficult to convince a villager in Malawi who has one set of clothes, no jewelry, and no car that they are rich. The challenge is that what we can see (earthly things) don't have eternal value and what we can't see (heavenly things) have lasting value...the one way get through to everyone is the truth. The truth is the truth is the truth...whether you believe it or not doesn't change it from being the truth. The truth proves itself.

 As the body of Christ, we can show the world the truth. We can be joyful when our car breaks down. We can be steadfast when calamity comes. We can sing when we have no idea where a new job will come from after losing our old one. We can trust in God, concentrating on His unchanging character...believing not in our current circumstances, but in His eternal promises. We can hold onto the unseen in the face of the broken earthly reality and show others that God can and will do the impossible.

God is able. He has proved it over and over again in my life...if I do not share my troubles, I cannot share when God comes in and addresses them. We need to be vulnerable enough to share our problems with the world, so that when God provides, we can share that story and give Him the glory He deserves.

We need to be a little less concerned with designer handbags and what kind of car we drive, and a little more focused on what matters eternally...love. Both the love that we receive from God, and the love that we share with our neighbor.


Where is your treasure? Mine is piling up in heaven, waiting for the day that I finally arrive...until then, I have everything that I need for this earthly life in Jesus.