Where is your heart?

As we prepare for the Summit, it is important for us to remember that self-examination is key to the process of renewal or revival. The process of looking into the mirror and examining ourselves is often times painful at best. When we look at our devotion to Christ, often times we can be disappointed feeling as if we simply do not measure up. There are people who seem far more spiritual than we do. The question is not how spiritual we seem on the outside, but where our heart is.

Today we look at another heart-probing statement from Francis Chan’s, Crazy Love. The second description of someone who is lukewarm is; “Lukewarm people give money to charity and to the church... as long as it doesn’t impinge on their standard of living. If they have a little extra and it is easy and safe to give, they do so. After all, God loves a cheerful giver, right?” (Crazy Love, p. 69) Now this is starting to get personal!

When it comes to checking on where our heart is, there is no better indicator than our money. Jesus taught about money and wealth frequently. That means it must be a pretty important subject. What we do with our resources is a good indicator of our spiritual condition. If we are wise, we will use money as a spiritual EKG. What is your money saying about the condition of your heart?

As we look to Christ, asking for a fresh touch of His presence in our lives, we must do so from a position of full surrender. We cannot hold back anything in our life and expect the Holy Spirit to do something extraordinary in our midst. It is a matter of devotion. Jesus said, “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.” (Matthew 6:24 ESV)

God shows up when His people demonstrate their heart is for Him. When they humble themselves, pray, seek, and turn. We must turn from our way of self-reliance in every area of our lives. That includes our money.