Things Above
Isn’t it interesting when everywhere you look you seem to hear the same message, and you begin to wonder, “Hmm . . . perhaps God’s trying to tell me something.” I’ve felt like that the past few days. In our current situation, I feel like I’m constantly evaluating and re-evaluating what we’re doing. From a worldly perspective we must look crazy: We left Jeff’s very successful line of work in Civil Engineering to go back to school, get rid of our belongings, and plop down about $50,000 on graduate school so that we both can have degrees that literally guarantee that we will make less money than we have ever made before. Even as I write it I kind of have to shake my head. It sounds crazy. Of course, we must not think it’s crazy or we wouldn’t have done it. But I waver. Sometimes I do feel crazy, and I start to panic and think what have we done?! When I have times like this, Jeff always seems to have a word of encouragement. On Sunday, he forwarded me an awesome devotional, entitled “Remember why you sold everything — keeping the treasure in view during the long wait.” I’d encourage you to read it (click anywhere on the title and you’ll go there).
So that was a shot of perspective for me, considering that yes, that man in the parable probably seemed crazy to others, but he knew more than them; he knew the great value of the treasure he was obtaining, for which he sold all that he had. Now, please hear me in this also: I’m not saying that just because we’re shelling out lots of money for a seminary degree necessarily means we are laying up treasure in heaven. Anybody can squander money on education and not lay up nothin’ in heaven! It’s not a simple equation like that. I believe the reason it’s the right thing to do is that in prayer and in our times with God we’ve sensed this is His call on our lives. This does not make us any better than someone who’s call is to serve in the military or flourish in the business world. The key is that we’re responding to the specific call God has on our individual lives.
So, anyway, what’s difficult for me is that I’m having trouble keeping this all in perspective because so much of me just screams out that I want a normal life with a big house and preferably a nice retirement plan and maybe just a teeny bit of sacrifice, enough to make life adventurous, but not enough to really hurt. You see, I don’t want to really sacrifice I just want to sacrifice enough so that I can feel good about having “sacrificed.” Oh my ugly heart! This is the truth, though–isn’t it gross?!
So, after reading that article, I open up my BIble for morning devotions and I read the book of Philippians. I practically fall into a trance while I’m reading Paul’s words, how he literally counted everything that used to be gain to him, he counted it as loss, “for the excellence of the knowledge of CHrist Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ” (Phil 3:7-8). The part that really struck me was his exhortation that our citizenship is in Heaven. He is appalled by those who “set their mind on earthly things. For our citizenship is in heaven” (Phil. 3:19-20). Oh I am such an American! I need God to help me to set my mind on treasure above, the perspective of heaven, and to appropriate that truth–that I am a citizen of heaven.
So today, I sit down for morning devotions and read the book of Colossians, and once again see this same theme: “Seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you will also appear with Him in glory” (Col. 3:1-4). Christ who is my life. Christ is my life. Heaven is my home. I have a job to do here on earth, to glorify God by enjoying Him and drawing others to His marvelous light. I need to remember why I’m here.
And so, I’m asking God to daily renew my mind, renew my heart, help me to keep my eyes on the prize, on the treasure, on the goal. This isn’t a dreary thing–the result is glorious! The less I am tied to the things here on earth the freer I will feel, the more joyful and content my heart will be. God, help us to seek the things above. Show us what that’s like; change us from the inside. Give us heavenly perspective. THank you, Lord.