Sacrifice

"We look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal" 2 Cor 4:18. How often do I sacrifice the eternal for the temporal? I know I harp on this a lot in these postings and if you talk to me even more, but I can't stress it enough. I had a moment just a little while ago that hit me in the heart. Do you ever have those moments that you knew were going to come around and hurt because you chose to let something slide a while ago that now comes back? It was a moment that could have easily been avoided had I not settled for temporal affirmation and satisfaction. We are prone to think that we can let our friends off by not telling them the things that they do to cut us down and "love them in spite of it". Yes, it's true, but there are those moments when we KNOW we should say something, know that they cannot and should not be treating someone like this and yet we allow them. We convince ourselves that this is really loving them and that we need to learn to be stronger and not be so emotionally driven. The details are of no value, but why do we do that? Why do we want people to accept us and stay around so much that we sacrifice the really loving part of the friendship? We do what we need to do at that moment to make them happy instead of being the friend that they really need. Because when we're honest no one really wants that friend right now- the friend that tells you it's not ok to treat them a certain way; the friend that kindly tells you when you should have done what you said you would do; the friend who lets you know that the way you acted the other day or that comment that you made was not appropriate. Those friends, we have a hard time with them. They're the people that love us so much they tell us when they can no longer listen to what we're talking about because it's not uplifting to the Kingdom. The friends that stand by our side when we need stability against all odds and yet tell us when we were wrong.

Anyway, it's because we set our eyes on the things that are seen. We set our eyes on being affirmed, set our eyes on being the best; set our eyes on being well-liked and having lots of attention. We set our eyes on success as being always having plans, always having friends calling, always having the right things to say and do. "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." Our treasure is our success and affirmation. We want so desperately to be told that we're valued, that we matter. But you know, that shouldn't be my treasure and it's no wonder that because it is my treasure that that is why my life is often filled with disappointment. "For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks." When your heart is where your treasure is then your mouth is gonna speak some pretty temporal things that are of occasional momentary value but hardly any eternal. It'll make your a decent short-term friend but not worth it for the long run.

So what do we do? We must not lose sight of the prize. "I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God had called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." Are we pressing on or are we standing still waiting on people to affirm us and lead our lives? We must not lost sight of Jesus. We MUST set our eyes on the eternal, on Jesus. We must set our treasure on things that matter so that we can realize we matter because the things inside of us matter. If our treasure is eternal then our heart will be there which means our overflow from our hearts is good so that our mouths will speak truth and things of value.

If you have those moments that you're not sure why you're insecure, acting weird or you say something that you're not sure why you said it, know that you're human. But know that's not an excuse. Check your heart, check your treasure. Make sure they're eternal. Make sure they matter because it's the only way you will.