“Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be” (Matthew 6:21)
The past couple of years Reid and I have been making “those plans” that no one really wants to make. It appears we are unable to slow down this process of aging, so we decided we needed to face it with some wisdom. Therefore, we delved into estate planning. We first sat down with our attorney, who helped us draw-up a will, power of attorney, and other needed legal documents. We then made certain every account had names of beneficiaries attached to them. All this motivated me to include with our will a letter to our family that listed some material things that have value, as well as some sentimental things of value that we want them to be aware of once we have gone home to be with the Lord. In the letter, I also included insurance information and passwords they will need.
Here is what I discovered while doing this. Whenever I would think of something that had a financial value to it, I would simply list it in the letter. However, when I listed something that had a sentimental value to it, I found myself smiling as I would reminiscence about a person or event attached to the treasure.
What is valuable to us? Many of you would say family, friends, and memories of good times. All of these are good things, but would we also list as valuable our morals, or say our principles and ethics? How about our thought life, or the way we treat others? Are these things valuable to us? They should be. For these are the things that outwardly express what is in our hearts.
God wants us to have nice things we can pass on to our loved ones. As well, He wants us to cherish in our hearts good memories of others or times past. However, the real treasure we possess lies deeply locked-up in our hearts. Things, that though they have no material value, God has transformed by his grace to bring him glory. Jesus was teaching in Matthew 6:21 that what is in our hearts will define what we truly hold to be valuable.
When we list the valuable things we possess, it would be very wise to begin by examining our hearts. What exactly are our values in life? What do we hold to be dear to us? Is there more bitterness or selfishness in our hearts than there is genuine love? What on our list of things that we value really deserve to be valued?
Darlene