Daily Reading for Thursday, Jan. 10

Matthew 13:44 "The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.”

“How different our lives are when we really know what is deeply
important to us, and, keeping that picture in mind, we manage ourselves each day to be and to know what really matters most.”
—Stephen Covey, author and speaker

Jesus told us that the kingdom of heaven consisted of individuals who, when they realized where their treasure was, did all they could to legally obtain it so that they could have full claim to it. When we look at what we truly value, and we write down our core values—those values that are vital to our living our life as God desires and intends—we become like that man who found the treasure in the field—full of joy, ready to abandon anything that would hinder us from obtaining the treasure, and doing all we can solely for the purpose of getting the prize. Our values are not the prize; they help us obtain it. The prize is living out the destiny God has spoken over our lives; our values keep us in the race. They help us not be deterred or distracted. We cannot reach our destiny if we do not know our values. Look at the Stephen Covey quote. How different would your life be if you lived according to what was of the deepest importance to you? How different would this church be if we lived according to what was of the deepest importance to us?