Series: Our Primary Concern
Part Three: Second Application (verse 34)
By: Kristen L. McNulty
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Okay, so in the past two week's we've been talking about making the Kingdom of God our primary concern and how we can do that in our own lives. This whole idea comes from Luke chapter 12, verse 31 where Jesus said: "[God] will give you all you need from day to day if you make the Kingdom of God your primary concern." He then went on to talk about four key principles. Last week we talked about verse 33 where Jesus said to sell what you have and give to those in need. This week we're going to take a look at the second principle found in verse 34.
Verse 34 says "Wherever your treasure is, there your heart and thoughts will also be." So the question I want to ask you tonight is where are your heart and thoughts? You see, if we want to make the Kingdom of God our primary concern, then it must also be our treasure. And in order for something to be our treasure, our heart and thoughts must be focused on it. As Paul said in the book of Colossians: "Let heaven fill your thoughts."
While this may sound easy in mere words, in practice it's tough. Just think about the past hour. During that one hour, how often has your thoughts been on the Kingdom of God or God at all? Now you see why Jesus also said in scriptures that whoever wants to follow Him must pick up their cross, because the Christian life is not a walk in the park.
Now while keeping our heart and thoughts focus on the right thing- the Kingdom of God, isn't easy, with God's help it's more than possible.
So how do we do it? How do we keep our minds and heart focused on the eternal? One of the best ways I know of is by memorizing scripture. You may think you can't memorize any more material, but you're wrong. We as humans don't even begin to fill our memory capacity. Most of us can recall music lyrics from songs we listened to as children, so don't tell me you can't memorize even a verse a week.
And speaking of music, I've found that there is no better way to be focused on the eternal than to listen to Christian music. I don't know about you, but every day I listen to music for at least a couple of hours. During those hours, I have a choice. I can fill my mind and therefore, my thoughts, on the things of this world through secular music or I can fill my mind with the things of God through Christian music. Am I saying secular music is evil? No, in fact there are many positive songs out there. I am saying though, if you want to focus your heart and thoughts on God's kingdom, listening to music that is turning your attention on those things is going to help you get there.
Finally, if you want to keep your heart and thoughts focused on your treasure and therefore God, make sure your life reflects your priority. Meaning, if you are filling your life with things that have nothing to do with making the kingdom of God your primary concern, then you can think about God's Kingdom all you want, but in the end it isn't going to mean a thing.
Tune into the MAD Christian Radio Show next week when we continue our series on Luke chapter 12.
This devotional was aired as a part of the Making A Difference Christian Radio Show.