It's Friday! (Although Fridays aren't quite the same during Quarantine and working remotely!)
This is the day the Lord has made. let us rejoice and be glad in it! God bless you and our world.
Sending love and encouragement to all,
Rev. Dr. Sandy Seaton-Todd
Bible Verse I Peter 3:9 Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult.
Bible Story Matthew 13:44 The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid, then in their joy went and sold all they had in order to buy the field.
What is your greatest treasure? What are you willing to sacrifice in order to have that treasure in your life? My kids used to have swimming T-shirts that said, "What the mind can conceive, the body can achieve." When our dream or desire is great enough, we will find a way to achieve it. Throughout history people have searched for treasure. In Jesus' time, it was not uncommon for people to become suddenly rich by finding some hidden treasure that had been hastily concealed in time of war or tumult.
Today people still set out to get rich, even doing crazy things in the pursuit of wealth. Wealth can make life a lot easier and enable enjoyment of a lot of things. But rich or poor, happiness can be found in our own backyards when we realize happiness is a state of mind, not a state of wealth. Happiness is a choice.
Choosing the kingdom of heaven is also a choice. In the Gospel of Matthew the kingdom of heaven is interchangeable with knowing Christ. The parable is saying that the greatest treasure is knowing Christ, and once someone knows Christ, they will sacrifice any earthly treasure in order to hold on to the treasure of Christ. No matter how blessed we are with earthly treasures, nothing compares to the peace and joy that Christ brings, even in a world full of evil and insult.