Where do you store your treasure?
by Pastor Glenn Crouch
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For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also (Matthew 6:21).
Anxiety is a major problem in our society. This is when the stress and anxious feelings about a situation don’t go away. Beyond Blue informs us that anxiety is the most common mental health condition in Australia and that, in any year, over two million Australians experience anxiety. Before going further, I would encourage you, if you do struggle with anxiety, to talk to someone you trust – maybe your pastor and/or health professional about it.
In our passage today, which is from the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus talks about some of the things his listeners would worry about. These can often be the same for us. It is not good when you are uncertain how you will feed your family, pay the rent or mortgage, or afford your child’s school excursion etc. I know that I have had times where such concerns have caused me to lose sleep and start to panic.
Jesus encourages us to change our priorities and make following him the priority, where we will learn about the Father and his commands. He is not saying that the problems will disappear or that the concerns above don’t matter, but we don’t have to face things alone. Our Father in Heaven loves and cares for us and is with us as we go through our struggles. As we focus more on Jesus, we find our perspective changes, and our burden is lighter.
So, where do your priorities lie? Where do you store your treasure?
God of my salvation, fill me afresh with your Holy Spirit so that I come to you with my cares and worries. Help me see how much you love me, and grant me the reassurance that you are always with me. In Jesus’ mighty name, I pray. Amen.
Glenn Crouch was born in Brisbane and was baptised in the Methodist Church. He married Karen in a Reformed Baptist Church, and they moved to Kalgoorlie in Western Australia 37 years ago, where Glenn worked as a lecturer in computing. After serving as a Baptist pastor, Glenn joined the Lutheran Church with Karen in 1995. Glenn served as a lay preacher, which led to him becoming a Specific Ministry Pastor (SMP), and he recently transitioned to General Ministry Pastor (GMP). Glenn still lives in Kalgoorlie-Boulder with Karen, where they have raised two boys.
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