God's Treasure

I wrote the following during our Sunday school lesson today on the building of the tabernacle in Exodus 36-40:

From guilt to grace the people turned
To worship God, the One they’d spurned.
They gave their treasure to provide a place,
A reminder of God’s saving grace.

Will we likewise give our best
Or will we put Him to the test?
Our lives are His, and all we own
Belongs to God and God alone.

Forgive us when we hold too tight
To things we own and think we’re right.
Lord, open our hearts and hands to You
To give the worship You are due.

Use our lives to give You glory.
Use our mouths to tell Your story.
May we always worship You
With all we have and all we do.

“Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20 ESV).

© 2019 Dawn Rutan. Unless otherwise indicated all images are copyright free from pixabay.com. The opinions stated do not necessarily reflect the views of my church or employer.

Secure

I arrived home from my Christmas travels to find my back door kicked in and my jewelry box missing. One of the first things I told the police was “They’re gonna be really disappointed when they try to pawn my stuff. I didn’t have much of value.” After the police left, I was reminded of Matthew 6:19-21 (ESV):

“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.”

At times like this, I know where my treasure truly is. Sure, I’m disappointed in losing things that were given to me by my grandparents and parents, but it doesn’t break my heart. (This bothers me less than the workman I allowed into my house who stole from me, because he pretended to be trustworthy.)

Ironically, I heard this from Alistair Begg today as I was catching up on Truth for Life— “My Help Come From the Lord:”

“Luther said in that great hymn*, ‘But though they take my goods, honor, children, wife, yet is their profit small.’ Why is it small? Because Luther says, ‘All I have is Christ.’ You see, where this goes south for us is if we have not come to the point where all we ultimately have is Christ... If my security, my confidence is in my wealth... or if it’s in my health, or if it’s in my wife, then if you take my wife, my wealth, or my health it’s a disaster. It has to be. But if my security is in Christ, then though they take my wife, goods, children, life, then is their profit small. Why? Because my help comes from the Lord who made heaven and earth.”

On the tails of a season often characterized by materialism, it’s a good reminder that our greatest gifts are the intangible things of Christ. There is humility to be found in knowing that worldly possessions don’t last and don’t define us. I remember when I bought my car in 2001. I had less than 200 miles on the odometer when a flying rock chipped the windshield. It was (and still is) a visible reminder that I can’t tie my happiness and pride to things that will disappear sooner or later. Rocks, rust, thieves, disease, and all kinds of other things will take their toll.

So I am thankful for the gifts that never end:

• Salvation and forgiveness
• Reconciliation with God
• Having God as my Father, Jesus Christ as my Brother, and many siblings in the Body of Christ
• Eternal life in a perfect Kingdom

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly place... In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight...” (Ephesians 1:3, 7-8).

“...I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that He is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me” (2 Timothy 1:12).

“Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful” (Hebrews 10:23).

(*The hymn he quotes is a more literal translation of “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God.”)

© 2017 Dawn Rutan. Unless otherwise indicated all images are copyright free from pixabay.com.

Treasuring God on the Mountain

Thoughts from Family Camp 2016

1) In a quiet moment at the creek, I was watching the water striders floating around. Each one stayed in a particular spot, and if another came within 6-8 inches they would chase it off. There were some interesting fights on the water's surface. Some worked hard to keep from floating downstream, while others rested against rocks. None of them seemed to accomplish anything, but each defended its square foot admirably. 

Unfortunately, the same might be said of some churches. Nothing is ever accomplished, but they've kept their building or their tradition safe from intruders while the stream of life keeps flowing past. There are some things we are to preserve and protect, but buildings and traditions aren't among them. Ephesians 4:3 (ESV) says we are to be "eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." That's hard to do if we're busy defending our turf rather than the gospel. 

2) One fussy young lad was heard to say "Nothing will make me happy but gum." That might seem silly, but I'm not sure some folks ever grow up. Their desires just get bigger and more expensive— a truck; a house; a spouse; a divorce; better health... "I'd be happy if I just had this one thing."

Josh Chamberlin's devotion on Tuesday talked about "It Is Well With My Soul." I was reminded of a blog idea I'd been kicking around: It may not always be well with my body, my emotions, my work, etc., but ultimately none of that matters if it is well with my soul. And because of Christ, my deepest needs have been met. Everything else is just a passing desire. 

3) Even though this is Family Camp, and many folks do come with multiple generations of family, it is evident that we are all brothers and sisters in God's family. Those of us who come alone are quickly adopted by others. People go out of their way to help those in need. Kids migrate from one family to another (often dependent on who's at the front of the lunch line).

That's the beauty of being part of this larger family, but it doesn't always happen at the local church level where we don't spend extended times together. I can say from experience that it can be hard for someone new to a church to break into the circles of biological families and build meaningful relationships. That's something we need to be constantly mindful of. 

4) In the evening services, Travis Hutcheson shared from Deuteronomy 6. I hadn't thought before about the personal application that we were all once slaves to something, but now we are free in Christ and are heading to the Promised Land. It kind of parallels 1 Corinthians 6:11: "And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." 

I often wrestle with how to accept that as true while yet living with the temptations of this life. The Israelites had the same problem. Although they knew God was leading them to a better land, whenever things got tough they started looking back to the "good life" in Egypt. Although physically free, they were still mentally enslaved to a life that was killing them. And today, even though we are spiritually free, we still find ourselves longing for Egypt because we can't fathom the Promised Land that is coming and we don't want to wait for it. And as Chris Hall reminded us, one thing that will help us to persevere is to remember that God chose is to be His treasured possession. 

"Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, you shall be My treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is Mine" (Exodus 19:5).

© 2016 Dawn Rutan.