Where Moth and Rust destroy…

When I moved from Minneapolis to Little Rock, I knew that I probably could dispense with the mounds of sweaters and jackets I had accumulated over 40+ years (no---I didn't have my sweaters from high school or anything). For those geographically challenged, the climate is a little different between the two cities. So, as I took out some of these sweaters, I noticed some holes. They were moth-eaten. None of them were in major disarray but there were holes. And, our cars in Minnesota had survived many winters driving on the salt-filled roads and had accumulated a lot of rust. Moth and Rust…hmmm, where had I heard that before?

In times like this, there are significant challenges we face as people and as a nation. When people are seeing their retirement accounts lose in a few days what had taken years to gain, attention is paid. Someone has said that adversity is where life makes up its mind. If your security and hope is in things like retirement accounts, political candidates, pension accounts or careers, you might be feeling a little battle weary.

Those old sweaters that had holes in them were my security for warmth at one time. And those cars that were corroding from the bottom up were shiny new vehicles that I put my travel hope in when I had them. In fact, the car I drove in high school had holes in the top quarter panels in the front so when I drove in the snow, slush would come pouring through those holes, kicked up by the tires, and cake on my windshield. It was pretty funny! Needless to say, that car isn't carrying anyone anywhere anymore.

I find that an often quoted and maybe taken for granted passage of the bible really puts things into perspective:

"Don't hoard treasure down here where it gets eaten by moths and corroded by rust or—worse!—stolen by burglars. Stockpile treasure in heaven, where it's safe from moth and rust and burglars. It's obvious, isn't it? The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being.

22–23 "Your eyes are windows into your body. If you open your eyes wide in wonder and belief, your body fills up with light. If you live squinty-eyed in greed and distrust, your body is a dank cellar. If you pull the blinds on your windows, what a dark life you will have!

24 "You can't worship two gods at once. Loving one god, you'll end up hating the other. Adoration of one feeds contempt for the other. You can't worship God and Money both.

Peterson, E. H. (2002). The Message : The Bible in contemporary language (Mt 6:19-24). Colorado Springs, Colo.: NavPress.

Whether the burglars are corporate greed mongers, liberal politicians who think everyone is entitled to everything or moth and rust, the reality is, there is only one place to put our trust. I think you know where that is. It's not in people or things on this earth, that's for sure and it's been proven time and time again. Don't buy the lie that it will be different with Senator SO-AND-WHAT in office. It WON'T. Only God can answer life's biggest question---where do I place my trust??