Matthew 6:1-21
Be Still: Father, thank you for the gift of life. Holy Spirit, please fill me and speak to me as I read your word today.
Read: Matthew 6:1-21
‘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.’ (v19-21)
Encounter: My grandpa is super savvy when it comes to money. If there’s a tax efficient way to wash socks, you can guarantee he knows it. He only buys the yogurt on special offer, and he’ll travel that extra mile to get the petrol 1p/litre cheaper. Throughout his working life, he also put as much money as he could afford to into his pension and invested in stocks and assets that increased in value. Safe to say he had a comfortable retirement.
Jesus is the world’s most savvy financial advisor. He knows which stocks are going up and which are going to tank. His advice: invest in heaven. The earthly stocks may look good right now, but they’re set to plummet. Invest in the Kingdom of God, it offers guaranteed returns and a great retirement plan.
Apply: What are you investing in at the moment? Are you storing up treasure on earth or are you stockpiling treasure in heaven? Take some time this week to reflect or, better still, grab your bank statements and go through them with your new financial advisor Jesus. Ask him where you could be making smarter financial decisions. Could you sell some earthly assets and buy some kingdom ones instead? It might be as simple as cancelling the Netflix subscription and diverting that £5.99 a month to the church instead or it could be downsizing your house and using the money to fund mission.
This principle doesn’t just apply to our finances. We can also store up treasure in the way that we spend our time, the way we sacrificially love people.
Devote: Father, please give me wisdom in my finances. Please show me the ways that I can stockpile treasure in heaven.