Empty Things

 

What do these three things have in common?  They are all treasure boxes of differing types.  The smallest one on the left was the box that held my wedding band, pretty important in the big scheme of things.  The middle one holds a collection of different coins, some from here in the US and some from my various travels to other countries.  Not quite as valuable as the ring box but still valuable none-the-less.  And finally the one on the right is a jewelry box that was my mom's.  I have had it for years and in it is a collection of many memories of my life that I hold dear.  Monetarily not worth much but emotionally very valuable.  

All of these boxes are treasure boxes.  But, they hold nothing of real, eternal value.  They are all "things" of this life.  And someday they will be items to be tossed away or cashed in or perhaps held onto by my kids.  Hard to say.  

This morning as I was reading my Bible I came across a passage in I Samuel that I don't think I ever really noticed before.  Samuel is speaking to the children of Israel following their decision to make Saul their first king.  I Samuel 12: 20-22 "And Samuel said to the people, 'Do not be afraid; you have done all this evil.  Yet do not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. And do not turn aside after empty things that cannot profit or deliver, for they are empty. For the Lord will not forsake his people, for his great name's sake, because it has pleased the Lord to make you a people for himself."  The people of Israel had put their faith into an earthly king, an empty thing that could neither profit or deliver them.

Jesus also spoke about "treasure boxes."  Matthew 6:19-21 "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

So, I thought a lot about this today as I was going through my day.  Where are my treasures?  Are they empty things or are they eternal things?  What do I invest my time in the most?  Empty things or eternal things?  Boy, that was a really hard conversation to have with myself.  The conclusion that I came to is that I have spent far too long worrying about earthly treasure boxes such as relationships, career, and possessions and not enough time on Kingdom things like worshiping God with all my heart, soul and spirit and loving my neighbor as I love myself.  

Going forward I want to be more Kingdom minded and less empty things minded.  Because at the end of my life what really matters is what I have done for Christ and His Kingdom.