Where is your heart’s treasure?

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matthew 6:21

How do you know what your treasure is? Use the discipline of fasting to find out. What do you go to when you’re stressed? Food? Any black screen? Busyness? Coffee? Alcohol? Drugs? Physical activity? If you fast – you will find out quickly those things that have become your ‘treasure’ and things you use and most likely have put ahead of the Spirit of God in your life. Most people make excuses for their ‘comforts’ / idols / sex / and emotional crutches. When the Holy Spirit wants to point out how the enemy uses those things in your life to diminish your spiritual life with Jesus. Does this mean all those things in your life are inherently bad? No. It means that you may have been lured to think those things will solve your ‘problems’ or lack better than God, and that those things are the things you need to turn to when you’re feeling bad, uncomfortable, stressed, fearful, and anxious.

We are creatures of habit. Once we find something that we think works to solve our ‘need’ – we adopt it fairly quickly and do it over and over again, until we are forced to change. Who is supposed to be our ‘bread’ of life? Who is supposed to be our ‘living’ water? Who is supposed to be our ‘shelter’ in a storm? Who is to be our ‘fortress’ in a time of attack? Who is to be our ‘contentment’ in rest? The Spirit of God isn’t just supposed to be a passenger in your body just for the ‘ride’, He should be in the ‘driver’s seat’ guiding you through your life everyday… through every intersection of your path.

What do you do by habit that He wants you to change? Have you asked Him? Or does He need to take the ‘grace’ off that area so that life becomes unbearable in that area? Have you ever noticed when something that seemed fine, even good, becomes the most difficult and annoying part of your day and life? Have you ever asked the Holy Spirit why that is? Are we so stubborn and hard of hearing towards His voice and instruction that He allows our lives to become very difficult, so that we might finally turn to Him… again? God wants our lives to be full and rich in communion with Him. But we live a world where we are taught to believe that only we can solve all our issues. The world laughs at the thought of listening to the Spirit of God. In fact, most think that means you are crazy and have a mental condition. How well do you do with societal pressure? Do you want desperately for people to like you? Do you cave when everyone else is ‘doing it’? Do you look which way the crowd is going and try to catch up? That isn’t the path God wants you to take.

Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few. Matthew 7:13-14

Have you ever asked the Holy Spirit if there is anything He wants you to give up? OR He wants you to start …that you really don’t want to? How much of your life has you in the ‘driver’s seat’ of your life? Is He really first place in your life? Ask Him to show you where He isn’t.

Fasting is the discipline that uncovers areas of weakness, and hones and strengthens your will. Are you really determined to follow after Him?