Priorities

Meditations for Ragamuffins

April 29, 2024

Priorities

Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal.

Matthew 6:19 

Jen Hatmaker wrote her book, 7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess, after a visitor commented on the extravagance of her family’s upper middle-class home. 7 is the true story of how Jen took seven months, identified seven areas of excess in her life, and made seven choices to fight against overindulgence. Jen’s visitor provided a kairos moment that enabled Jen to step back and examine the priorities of her life. Her experiment revealed to her that she had been sucked into the American dream of more, and bigger and better.

Sometimes it seems like the American capitalist economy is a giant Ponzi scheme. Economists want the daily stock market reports to show an increase, never a decrease. Even remaining unchanged is not a good option. For the markets to increase, consumers must spend more and more money. Therefore, industries continually advertise bigger and better gizmos to replace the gizmos we already have and that work just fine. If we all follow Jen’s example and drastically reduce our spending, the house of cards will come tumbling down. Or so we are told.

Over and against the reality of our times, Jesus teaches us, “Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be” (Matthew 6:19-21).

My Takeaway: Jesus’ counsel is about the priorities of our lives. As I consider my priorities, I begin with my paraphrase of 2 Thessalonians 1:11-12.

I pray and ask God to enable me to live a life worthy of his call and that He give me the power to accomplish all the good things my faith prompts me to do, so the name of my Lord Jesus will be honored because of the way I live.  I believe this is all made possible because of the grace of our God and Lord, Jesus Christ.

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

 

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

 

Copyright © 2024 by Alex M. Knight

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.