Treasures

Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

The air is heavy with dust and memories trapped in time. My eyes scan the messy piles of antiques at the flea market, and all I see are treasures waiting to be mined—heaps of old plates and boxes with trinkets and throwaways. The single competitive bone in my body wakes up, fearing someone might make their discovery before I do.

The owner of the booth, a kind and generous elderly man, loves to tell stories. I listen as I keep searching and eventually dig up some vintage plates from a pile. “How much?” I ask.

“Fifteen dollars for all three,” he says.

“You’ve got a deal,” I say, handing him three five-dollar bills and planning how I’ll hang these treasures in our home.

When I was a little girl, I had a ritual every time we visited my grandparents in Arkansas. I’d steal away from the rest of the family and search through all the drawers that weren’t off-limits. I vividly remember opening the drawers, one by one, in search of priceless treasures.

The last time I stepped foot in that house was more than a decade ago, but I regularly dream I’m back there, searching the drawers and closets for the shimmer of treasured memories, the comfort of belonging, the riches of family heritage. These heirlooms are reminders to me that life is fleeting but God is forever faithful.

Seated on a hillside, Jesus gave a message we refer to as the Sermon on the Mount. In these words, he warned his followers not to lay up treasures on earth that can be destroyed in the blink of an eye. Instead, Jesus instructed his followers to store up treasures in heaven, where rust cannot tarnish them, fire cannot consume them, and disaster cannot destroy them (see Matthew 6:19-24).

With this in mind, what should we do with these earthly finds? We hold them loosely while holding tightly to the eternal treasures in the Kingdom to come. The things of earth point us to the real treasure we hunger for—the shimmering gospel truth that God sees redemption where we see rubbish.

The thrill of a flea market find fades, but the thrill of finding Christ is forever. After all, it’s not earthly treasures we’re really after; it is what they mean, what they point to—the ultimate treasure of knowing Christ.

Word before World The things of earth will pass away, but treasures in heaven last for all eternity.

Grow in Grace What earthly treasures are you most likely to store up? What do these treasures reveal about your heart? What would it look like to treasure Christ while holding your belongings loosely?