Your heart gets wrapped around what you treasure. Your life gets built around what you treasure. Whatever, wherever your treasure is, that’s where your heart will be. Your treasures are things that you value greatly, think of often, try to obtain, hold dear, guard, prize, arrange your life around, and work hard to keep. We all treasure something. It’s not a question of whether we will have treasures, it is a question of what or whom we will treasure. The Bible says you become like what you worship. Whatever you value most in your life will determine your values, declare your priorities, and proclaim what gets first place in your life. Whatever you serve and sacrifice for…is what you treasure. That which you treasure gets your devotion, regardless of the cost, inconvenience or effort.

Scriptures – Mt 6:19-21; Ac 3:6; Ps 115:4-8; Mt 22:37; Is 29:13; Hb 13:15; Ro 12:1, 18; Col 3:23; Pr 3:9; Josh 24:15

Verse – “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.” (Mt 6:19-21) I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. (Ro 12:1)

Thought – We are tempted to treasure all kinds of things above God. Worshiping God is a sacrifice of praise, coming before Him with more than a little gesture or meaningless words. It’s a sacrifice, an offering to God of your whole heart. In OT times people engaged in sacrifice as an important act of worship. They brought animals and cherished commodities to burn on the altar as a sacrifice, a gift to God. They also sacrificed offerings for forgiveness of sins. Jesus came to become the once-and-for-all sacrifice for sin. The burnt offerings were no longer needed or required. Paul then states in Romans 12:1 that we are to present our bodies to God as a living sacrifice, as spiritual worship. What we do every day in every area of life is to be worship! In our relational life we are called to put others first; in our vocational life we are called to be honest in our dealings and respectful of our co-workers and superiors, in our financial life we are called to be good stewards of what God has given us, and honor God by giving back to Him. Stewardship has to do with our time, talents, resources, relationships, and on and on…everything God has given us. What do you treasure above all else? Is God first? It’s a decision you must make. Joshua 24:15 …choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve…

Questions – What do you spend most of your time doing? How do you spend most of your money? What do you treasure most of all your possessions? What matters most to you? (a person, money, job, status?) How do you keep your priorities in order, and keep God first?

Response – Track your time, how you spend your hours. Assess your work life. Are you faithful, on time, trustworthy, respectful and honest? Go through your expenditures for the past month. Chart how you spent your money. Where did you spend the most? How does God rate in the expenditure of your time, talent and treasures?

Prayer – Gracious God, thank you for all you’ve given me to enjoy in this life. I treasure all I’ve been blessed with. But, Lord, you are the reason I have life and breath. You are the reason I have forgiveness and salvation and a home in heaven. Keep my heart devoted to you. May my life reflect that you are Lord of my heart, my #1 Treasure! In Jesus Name I pray, Amen.