Where is Your Treasure?

Where is your treasure?

“Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21).

For God, we are treasure: “You are children of the Lord your God. ... the Lord has chosen [you] to be his people, his treasured possession” (Deuteronomy 14:1-2). One of the gifts of being God’s children is that sometimes we are called to be “treasure tenders” for God. We are invited to tend God’s treasures beyond our congregation by participating in Week of Compassion.

Life can be tough at times. Hurricanes, tornadoes and tsunamis smash communities to bits. Wars and ethnic conflicts shatter the very foundations of life, shoving people out of their homes and countries. Persistent hunger, poverty, lack of education, and ill health shrivel the life and dry the spirit. The current economic crisis right here at home leaves us all feeling a bit uncertain.

But we can do something to respond! Through Week of Compassion, we gently and effectively care for God’s treasures. By sharing some of our earthly treasure—our money, our time, our energy—decisive aid can be sent when disaster strikes. Refugees receive help as they rebuild their lives. We help people help themselves through education, health care, tools, seeds, and resources to improve community infrastructure.

And the sharing is mutual. When we care for people, we can be transformed by experiencing the presence of God. Seeing what others (or we ourselves) have lost, we are reminded what matters most in life. Seeing what others live through, we are inspired to live courageously. Seeing that new life is possible, our hope rises.

Our treasure is doing God’s will, loving God, and loving God’s treasured people, so we all “may take hold of the life that really is life” (1 Timothy 6:19b). Jesus said, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21).

May you find your treasure, and your heart, by sharing resources and changing lives with a generous gift to Week of Compassion.

Please join us in sharing your treasure February 15 and 22, 2009.

Week of Compassion: Sharing Resources. Changing Lives.

www.weekofcompassion.org

(317) 713-2442