New Year Devotional: Selah Compassion ConversationsSample

 Where is My Treasure Stored?

“Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near, and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” 

—Luke 12: 33

Selah  

Our possessions don’t last. The house, the car, the holiday, the outfit, won’t last. And it won’t bring the joy that we so desperately seek. Rather than storing our treasures in memento boxes, Jesus tells us to hold our treasure in heaven.   

Not in bigger barns, not in clothing, or cars or retirement savings, but in heaven. Because it’s only there that our ‘purse’ cannot wear out. Only there that the thief cannot come near, or the moth destroy. Only there that we can find lasting joy.  

Meet Hana from Indonesia. She walks two kilometres—dragging a cart loaded with 17 jerrycans—to the nearest borehole every day. “If in a day I don’t push the cart and fill all the jerrycans, I can’t cook for my family, or my children can’t take a shower,” says Hana.  

Water scarcity is always challenging in her community, increasingly so in a pandemic when hand washing is critical. Compassion’s local church partner provided vital hygiene supplies and education to help overcome the water shortage and protect the health of children and families.  

Christ came to this earth; He walked among us and experienced the pain and challenges of our everyday world. As we reflect on the stories of those who encounter challenges like Hana’s, we have an opportunity to walk in another’s shoes.   

This is a great opportunity to remind ourselves of the power of where we store our treasures.

Reflection Question:

When you think of the word treasure, what images come to mind?  

Prayer:

Dear Jesus,  

Help our family to think about where our treasure is. What have we been storing up that we should have been giving away? Help us to be rich towards you and open our hearts to those who are in need.  

Amen