What's in Your Heart? - The Crosswalk Devotional - August 16

What’s in Your Heart?
By Clarence L. Haynes. Jr.

“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

I want to ask you a question that may not have such an obvious answer. Where is your treasure? The good “Christian” answer is to say my treasure is in heaven, and to say that would get a lot of amens from fellow believers. However, let’s take a moment and dig a little deeper and ask a second question. How do you know this? In this passage, Jesus points to the one thing that reveals where your treasure is. Your heart. The fact remains that only you truly know where your heart is and where your treasure is.

Masters of the cover-up.

We can become experts at covering up what is really in our hearts to the outside world. We can become so good at this that we can even convince people something is in our hearts that is not really there. When we do this, sometimes the one we are convincing is ourselves. Yet Jesus pulls back the curtain and says this one amazing statement. If you want to truly know what’s in your heart, the things you treasure will reveal it.

When reading this passage, one could make the mistake of thinking of treasure as only material possessions. While that could be the treasure, because there are many in this world who give their life to gaining things, treasure can go beyond that. Treasure is simply the things you are most passionate about and the things you value more than anything else. I want to give you another way to think about what you treasure. Think about this question. What do you want people to say about you when you are no longer here? This will also reveal what you treasure and where your heart is. As you think about it from this perspective, you soon realize that so much of what we spend our time running after doesn’t mean as much as the value we put on it. Because we live in a culture that is always going, it can become easy to get caught up and start valuing the things the world values. When we value what the world values and set those things as treasures, guess what happens? Our heart follows those things.

Time to refocus.

It might be time for you to reshape the things you treasure and set your heart on the right things. Since we all only have 24 hours in a day, you can’t set your heart on everything. So here is a treasure map for you to help ensure your heart is always pursuing the right things. If you set your heart on these two things, it will help define the things you run after.

1. Your relationship with Jesus.
The thing you should treasure more than anything else is your relationship with Jesus. This should be the most important thing in your life. So often, we make Jesus just one component of our life. I know this because I have done it before. If we are going to view life correctly, then Jesus should be at the center, and the components of our life should flow out of that center. Think of how your choices will change when your whole life revolves around your relationship with Christ. You will value what he values, and your heart will be in a better place.

2. Your commitment to do his will.
Closely related to your relationship with Jesus is your commitment to do his will. Like our relationship with Jesus, we can treat God’s will as a segment of our life. We tie ministry responsibilities to his will, but miss the other facets of our lives as part of God’s will as well. God’s will for your life is not something you accomplish only in church. It is something you live out every day. God’s will is about your family, your career, your finances, your leisure, and everything you do. It all has a purpose, and when you see it in this fashion and set your heart after it, then you will treasure the things of heaven because you see how it is all connected.

Where is your treasure?
Let’s finish with the original question. Where is your treasure? Regardless of where it is right now, I hope you can see where it should be. If you place your treasure in your relationship with Jesus and your commitment to doing his will, you will store up much treasure in heaven while having a great impact on the days you live on this earth.

Intersecting faith and life:
When you are treasuring the will of God, you will consider things based on if they will move your closer or further away from the place God wants you to be.

Further Reading

Clarence L. Haynes Jr. is a speaker, Bible teacher, and co-founder of The Bible Study Club. He is the author of The Pursuit of Purpose which will help you understand how God leads you into his will. His most recent book is The Pursuit of Victory: How To Conquer Your Greatest Challenges and Win In Your Christian Life. This book will teach you how to put the pieces together so you can live a victorious Christian life and finally become the man or woman of God that you truly desire to be. Clarence is also committed to helping 10,000 people learn how to study the Bible and has just released his first Bible study course called Bible Study Basics. To learn more about his ministry please visit clarencehaynes.com.