Riches that Matter

Sometimes I want to have a whining complaining spirit.  Anyone else, or is it just me?  It is amazing how, amid all the blessings that God has bestowed upon me, this spirit can sneak up on me so quickly.  Poor, poor pitiful me...I don't have a car, I never can buy new clothes, I haven't had a haircut in ages, I don't seem to have any friends lately, my house needs remodeling and who knows how we will afford that...really it could go on and on.  But what really is important in life anyway? What exactly can I bring into eternity?  When I think of it all in an eternal perspective, I realize that I am truly rich in the things that matter.  Jesus said, "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven....for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."  Matthew 6:19-21  I know many of us have heard those verses several times, but what do they really mean?  How can we store up treasures in heaven?

In this last year, God gave me a precious, precious gift.  It was a gift that I never knew I wanted.  In fact, I was quite adamant that I did not EVER want another one of these gifts.  God gave me a sweet little baby boy.  His name is Adam, and he has become one of the greatest blessings in my life.   Through the pregnancy and now through this little boy, God has taught me many, many things.  He reminded me who He called me to be: a homemaker, mommy, and homeschooler.  He really opened my eyes to the incredible blessing it is to be called "Mommy", and the high calling it is to be my husband's helpmeet.  He has shown me the joy in homeschooling. These are things that do not look important to the world, but in God's eyes they are like gold.  Real treasures.

In eternity, it won't matter that my hair was way too thick, my house was old and crumbling, or that I went months without a car of my own to drive.  What WILL matter is that I carried and nursed little babies, I loved and respected and cared for my husband, I took care of the home that the Lord saw fit to give me, I sacrificed my free time to keep my kids at home and teach them.  I fed my family, loved and held and kissed my children, and raised them to know and love Jesus.  In Jesus's eyes, I am truly, truly rich. 

Thank you Jesus for all of the blessings and real riches that you have given me, and please forgive me for the times that I have had a ungrateful, grumbling spirit!