Leawood, Kansas, United States - The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection Daily Guide grow. pray. study. for Wednesday, 16 July 2014 "Collecting treasures in heaven"

Leawood, Kansas, United States - The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection Daily Guide grow. pray. study. for Wednesday, 16 July 2014 "Collecting treasures in heaven"
Daily Scripture: Proverbs 14:22 Isn’t it obvious that conspirators lose out,
    while the thoughtful win love and trust?
Proverbs 21:20 Valuables are safe in a wise person’s home;
    fools put it all out for yard sales.
Matthew 6: A Life of God-Worship
19-21 “Don’t hoard treasure down here where it gets eaten by moths and corroded by rust or—worse!—stolen by burglars. Stockpile treasure in heaven, where it’s safe from moth and rust and burglars. It’s obvious, isn’t it? The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being.
Reflection Questions:
The collected wisdom of the ancient Hebrew sages said the key to a satisfying life does not lie in frantically amassing "treasures" this world values. Jesus forcefully agreed. Treasure in heaven, treasure by God's standards, is the most precious item we can "collect." What makes that most important, he added, is that our heart follows our treasure—or, said another way, what we treasure tells us where our heart's loyalties really lie.
Conduct a simple life audit. Review your calendar and your checkbook. Based on the time, energy and resources reflected in those two sources, what "master(s)" would you say you are serving? How can you see ways that your loyalties are shifting as you choose to invest in heavenly treasure? What kinds of changes could you make to give you greater freedom to fully serve God as Lord of your life?
Pastor Rick Warren has said, "If I put my money in my house, that is where my heart is. If I put my money in eating out,…if I put my money in my clothes, if I put my money into a hobby, that's where my heart is. So the question becomes, where do you want your heart to be?" How do you answer--where do your choices of priorities tend to focus your heart's affections?
Today's Prayer:
Lord Jesus, calling you "Lord" isn't just a nice, polite title. It means that you rule over my life and my priorities. Give me the courage and devotion to really mean it when I call you "Lord." Amen.
CROSSROADS-Navigating the Second Half of Your Life
Pastor Clayton Smith and Dave Wilson (left) wrote the interviews featured in this week’s Insights blog. The full stories will be published in an upcoming book: Journey to Significance, to be published by Beacon Hill in early 2015.
Bill is a retired clinical scientist who is just starting his journey to significance. He spent his last years in business mentoring and teaching others to do the job he did. When he talked to retired friends, he began to see how his skills could be a big part of his retirement future.
Though his initial retirement was a kind of easy-chair experience, seeking to “enjoy life” as much as possible, it didn’t take him long to see that God wanted him to do some things beyond that. He needed to give something back.
Bill found that in retirement, he had a flexible enough schedule to do things that mattered most. He has great passion for Christ and his church, and is finding ways to minister to small businesses here and in Africa. He has become active in his local Rotary club. He sees that his skills are leading him to help on Missions trips and to mentor others.
Bill’s wife has not yet retired, and Bill has not yet written a mission statement for the second half of life. However, he is a goal setter, so he and his wife have begun thinking about their personal mission statements. They want to leave a legacy of faith and love that will impact our church for decades to come!
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