Scripture:
Luke 12:21
"This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God."

Rich Toward God

In 2000, John Piper preached a message called "Seashells" to thousands of college students at the Passion Conference. In it, he contrasted two very different stories. The first was about two women in their 80s who had dedicated their retirement years to serving on the mission field in West Africa. While they were traveling on a steep mountain road in Cameroon, the brakes on their vehicle failed, and it went over a cliff, killing both women instantly. Piper said most people would call that a tragedy, but he wouldn't. They spent their lives being rich toward God. Was the accident tragic? Yes. Their lives were not.

What is tragic, he said, was a story he had read about a retired couple who moved to Punta Gorda, Florida, where they spent their days cruising on their 30-foot trawler, playing softball, and collecting seashells.

One of the enemy's greatest weapons is convincing us that our only purpose is the American Dream: to spend our lives preparing to do nothing. But I say it will not be the stuff we gather, the house we buy, or the retirement we enjoy that will matter in heaven; it will be how rich we were toward God. I often tell people that my greatest contribution will be my "Telling of Christ to Others."

Today, our portion is the closing statement of a story about a man who spent his time and energy building bigger barns so he could sit back and do nothing. Unknown to him, he would die that very night, and for all his preparation, he was not ready for what mattered most. Let that simmer...

Today, our God-Shot is that we would not get caught up in the patterns of the world or be deceived about what is truly great. Jesus said the greatest are those who serve. Greatness is defined by our Kingdom contribution, not by our retirement plan. It's not that you shouldn't have one; rather, what you do with it is what matters.

Q: Are you rich toward God?
Q: What will be your legacy, your magnum opus, your greatest contribution?

Don't let your finish line say, "We collected seashells and played softball!" Rather, let it say, "I led them to Christ!"

Lord, I know this will challenge us, and we should be challenged to evaluate what we consider a legacy, what we value, and what we are investing in. In the end, will it matter? Help us to be rich toward You and to serve You in whatever we do. Let our lives not be tragically spent, but let them be something weighty in the Kingdom. In Jesus' name, amen!

A few notes on bigger changes: I changed "bigger barn… so he could sit back" to keep the parable accurate (in Luke 12:20, God says "this very night," so I used "that very night" instead of "the next day"). I also reworded "nothing he thought he was prepared for was he" for clarity, and fixed "investing it" to "investing in." Everything else is punctuation, flow, and consistency, with your voice kept intact.

Scripture:
Luke 10:38-42
38 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. 40 But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”

41 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

Arguably, all of us could fit into Martha’s situation, where we have allowed the things of life to distract us from what is most important. Luke uses the Greek word periespato (περιεσπᾶτο), meaning “to be pulled or dragged in different directions; to be driven about.” Does the idea of a tug-of-war going on in your life, with things bidding and pulling for your attention, sound familiar? See, Martha wasn’t just busy; her attention was being battled for. She was being tugged away by many things, but Jesus says only one thing is important, and Mary chose it.

Q: What has your attention?
Q: What is your present tug-of-war? Is it work? Finances? Worry?

Today our God-Shot is to evaluate and examine what things have taken priority in our lives over our time—get this—with Him. Notice how Jesus gently redirects Martha’s attention. In a loving way, He repeats her name, “Martha, Martha,” even as she is annoyed with her sister for not helping. Today, where is Jesus gently tugging at your coat, drawing your attention back to Him? Maybe it is time to set aside all the anxiety and the tugs of the world and simply sit at His feet.

Father, thank You for this gentle reminder of how easily our attention can be misfocused, distracted, and tugged away by stuff rather than by what is most important: worship, prayer, time with You, Your Word, Your presence, and hearing from You. There always seems to be enough time for the things that try to pull us away, but not nearly enough time at Your feet. Lord, let us be there, and let us be transformed by it. In Jesus’ name, amen!

Scripture:
John 10:28-29
“28 I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand.”

This passage is part of the Good Shepherd discourse. In the previous verses, Jesus describes Himself as both the Good Shepherd and the Gate, and those who pass through are His sheep.

A little context may help, both for Jesus’ time and possibly still for our day. Shepherds in the wilderness would build temporary stone walls to keep their sheep in at night. They would make the entryway just big enough for the sheep to get through, and at night the shepherd would lie down in the doorway, first to keep the sheep in, and second to keep predators out: thieves, wolves, and wild animals that would try to steal, kill, and destroy the sheep (John 10:10).

But here in verse 28, Jesus speaks some of the most reassuring words for those who believe in Christ, those who are His sheep:

“I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish.”
“No one will snatch them out of my hand.”

Let that simmer in your soul...

Today’s God-Shot is a reminder that no one — not the enemy, not anything, not even you — can snatch you from Him. No one is greater than the Father, who gave His Son as a ransom for your life.

The questions are:

• What will you do with that?
• How will you decide to live for Him now?

Lord, thank You for the reminder that those who have given their lives to You belong to You, and they are secure and safe; no one can snatch them from Your hands. Help us to live in that security, but even greater, help us live for You. In Jesus’ name, Amen!

Scripture:
Mark 9:49
49 “For everyone will be seasoned with fire, and every sacrifice will be seasoned with salt.”

Context is important. In the previous verses, the disciples are arguing about who is the greatest, and Jesus tells them it is the least, the one who serves. Then, in verses 43–48, He talks about cutting sin out of our lives, the very things that separate us from God. In verse 49, Jesus shifts and gives us this picture:

“For everyone will be seasoned with fire.”

Fire has many purposes: to purify, to refine, to warm, and to cook. But I want to focus on two things. First, the Christian life is one of being refined and purified, whether by trial or by the work of the Holy Spirit. Second, the work of the Holy Spirit (fire) prepares us for His presence.

“And every sacrifice will be seasoned with salt.”

In Jesus’ day, salt was a very valuable commodity. In fact, people were sometimes paid their wages in salt, which is where we get the expression “worth his salt.” Salt brings flavor to everything it touches, and it preserves. Your greatest value and mine is our Kingdom contribution, our relationship with Christ. The salt is the work of Christ in our lives that is meant to spill out into the world, bringing something of worth and value into the lives we sprinkle it on. We are the flavor of Christ in a tasteless world, so we must guard our walk and stay salty.

Today’s God-Shot is more of a reminder that we are intended to be an aroma pleasing to God. Our purpose is to please Him, which means allowing the work of the Holy Spirit (fire) to refine us. We are also intended to bring Christ to a world that needs Him so desperately, just as salt brings flavor to everything it touches. May we be salty. Let that simmer a bit.

Lord, I pray that we would be the salt of this world, that we would bring Your presence into everything we do, and that we would change the world around us. Help us guard our walk and be tempered by fire, driving out the things that don’t belong and honoring You with what does. May our lives bring You glory. In Jesus’ name, amen!

Scripture:
Matthew 16:18
18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.

When I read this passage, I am reminded that God is in the business of reframing us. This is not the only time He has changed someone’s name: Abram became Abraham, Sarai became Sarah, and Jacob became Israel, to name a few. But here, just after Simon declares, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God,” Jesus says to him, “You are Peter” (Petros), meaning a stone, an individual rock, or a boulder. What a fitting name, considering what Jesus says next: “and on this rock I will build My church.”

What rock? We can easily be confused by this statement, or miss it entirely, thinking Jesus is saying that Peter is the rock the church is built on. But what He is really saying is that Peter’s declaration, that Jesus is the Christ, is the rock on which the church is built: Christ came to redeem humanity and to save us from death and hell, and nothing could stop it.

But here is where Peter comes in: Petros. Peter is an individual stone fitted into the solid-rock foundation that is Christ. His declaration makes him part of Christ’s plan to redeem you and me, and anyone who will receive Him.

Today’s God-Shot is a reminder that you and I are part of the foundation that is Jesus. Our calling is to tell others about Christ, to bring them onto the foundation of His sacrifice for them, to see them redeemed from sin and death, and to bring them into the plan of God, the solid rock that not even the gates of hell shall prevail against.

The truth is, God is still in the business of reframing us: transforming lives, changing our future, and shoring up the foundation of our today, so that the life we live is lived in His purpose and His plan.

Q: Who will you bring into this unshakable foundation that is Christ?
Q: Whom do you love who needs to know Him?

Father, I pray for those we will encounter today. Give us a God-Moment with someone, an opportunity to “build Your church” and share the truth of the Gospel, so that someone today might come to the saving knowledge of Christ that we have. I pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen!