Rich Towards God | Morning Routine Daily Devotional for March 24

And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”‘ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.” – Luke 12:16-21 ESV

As I watch the events unfold in Ukraine, and I see families and individuals fleeing to safety, it helps me put into perspective material wealth. These war-ravaged people cannot haul their earthly possessions with them as they flee for their lives. A sack full of goods or perhaps a suitcase full of clothes is all they can hope to take with them. I wonder how those decisions are made; what decisions would I make under similar circumstances?  

In light of today’s text, what do we value in our lives? Does your life, does my life demonstrate that value? What would we grab onto if we could only grab one thing to carry with us? 

I was once asked, “What would you take with you if you woke up in the night and your house was on fire?” My answer was simple, I said, “My wife!” I wasn’t trying to give a funny answer to a serious question, but in all honesty, I value my wife and my family relationships over any of my earthly possessions.

Jesus’ parable reached the hearts and souls of His listeners, and His Words reach all of us today.   Our focus should be on being rich towards God. If being rich towards God is our focus, then all our earthly treasures, possessions, and even our relationships will be in focus.