Store up treasures in heaven, not on earth

Imagine you are a parent who has just finished all your Christmas shopping. You managed to find every last item on your children's wish lists, including the year's hottest toys, for which you cut out of Thanksgiving early to be as close to the front of the Black Friday line as possible. Relief finally sets in, and now you can focus your remaining energy on decorating your tree, baking cookies, sending out Christmas cards, and the other holiday preparations. Then, without warning:

"Twas through a basement window, that all the presents left.
While daddy and mommy and their three children slept.
They awoke the next morning to a frightening sight,
That all of their presents disappeared during the night."

True story. Thieves broke into our house through a basement window and stole the wrapped Christmas presents that my parents had worked so hard to obtain for me and my two sisters, one of whom is special needs. Who would do something like this? Guess who the thieves turned out to be - the children of the impoverished neighbors down the street.

There is nothing wrong with parents wanting to give nice gifts to their children. But many who declare Jesus is Lord are dedicating too much time, talent and treasure living for this world and acquiring earthly possessions. The Bible instructs believers to store up treasure in heaven, where moth and rust cannot destroy, and thieves cannot break in and steal (Matt 6:19-20). How is this accomplished?  By selling what we have and giving to the poor (Matt 19:21). Yet we are failing to exercise this principle here in America, this Nation Under God,as we continue to build new self-storage facilities to meet the growing demands of American consumers who have acquired so much stuff that they are paying rent to store the overflow.

When Jesus returns, which could be in our lifetime. earthly treasure belonging to the bride of Christ who are suddenly caught up in the air will likely be looted or seized. Ultimately, it will decay or be destroyed when God does away with this planet and creates the new heaven and earth. Let us, therefore, store up treasures in heaven by helping those in need. There are plenty of worthy charities that are doing great work in the US and abroad. Consider stocking a fish pond for a poor village, or buying a milking cow for a poor family, or sponsoring a poor child's education for a year.