The more I prepare for and talk about the World Race, the more excited I become for the year of missions that lies ahead. I can’t wait for the ministry, service, growth, and adventure that this journey will bring. Through this excitement, though, it is easy for me to remember that this trip belongs to the Lord. Because I lack control over many aspects of the Race—where we are going, the ministry we will be doing, if people will support me—it isn’t difficult to remember that God is the one who is in control.
This trip, the funds I am raising—they belong to the Lord. They aren’t mine. And as I contemplate that fact, I think about the other things in my life that are the Lord’s. My job, my salary, and my savings are also the Lord’s. My free time, my future, and this very day all belong to the Lord. When this becomes my mindset, there are two results.
When I view everything in my life as belonging to God and not myself, my perspective shifts from earthly to eternal. My possessions have been loaned to me by the Lord. The numbered days of this life are a lease from the Lord. Knowing the temporary nature and true owner of our blessings keeps my focus on what is really important.
Matthew 6:19-21 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
This mindset also changes how I use things I’ve been given. If today is from the Lord, I am going treat it as such. If my income isn’t mine at all but the Lord’s, that changes what I spend it on. If my talents and are gifts from the Lord, to not use them would be thievery. Sacrificing time, comfort, or money is a joyful opportunity to return to God a portion of what he has given to us.
1 Peter 4:10 “Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.”
My challenge for you today is to ask yourself this question: Is there anything in my life that I’m treating like mine instead of the Lord’s?
