Three Places to Search for Treasure!

Have you ever lost something? Is there a treasure or a secret that you need to find? What if the most important thing in your life was hidden and you just needed to uncover it?

If you knew where to search and what you would find, you wouldn’t hesitate to begin right now. So what are you waiting for?

Search Yourself

The Bible tells us that we are created in God’s image. That means we are a treasure. We have such potential and promise in our own lives. We can do almost anything.

However, we have often nearly destroyed that image with our thoughts, words and actions. Too often we believe the lie that we are worthless and won’t amount to anything. When we believe the promise that Jesus came to give us eternal, abundant life things begin to change for us.

Here’s how we need to search:

Honestly. We must be transparent in our searching of our lives. We must examine every attitude and action, every word and habit.

Critically. We must be willing to be hyper-critical. It is better to be too critical than not critical enough. Remember that what seems okay to us may be offensive to others! Remember that the goal of being critical is not to put ourselves down or convince ourselves that we are worthless but to uncover things that are hurting our lives.

Without excuse. I’ve heard this before: that’s just the way I am. That’s no reason not to change your life! We need to stop making excuses for bad behavior, negative attitudes and everything else that detracts for that abundant life we are promised.

With God’s help. The Psalmist asked God to search his heart and life (Psalm 139:23-24). We must be willing to do the same.

Here’s what we need to search for:

Sin. Of course, sin is going to destroy our relationship with God and all the potential that lies in our lives. God is faithful and he will forgive our sin.

Unhealthy habits. We may have habits we don’t even think about that do us harm! Obvious things like over-eating and smoking come to mind but what about our entertainment habits, sleep habits and reactions?

Distractions. Life today is full of distractions. Every app on your smart phone is a potential distraction. When your day is full of distractions, you don’t have time to do the important things you must do for your physical, spiritual and emotional health!

Attitudes. Negative attitudes are destructive. Critical attitudes will isolate you from other people. Bitterness destroys relationships. You must be willing to identify attitudes that could harm you.

Search for the Good in Others

It is so easy to see people’s faults. Failures seem to scream out. Some people are difficult. Some are easy. But all have some good.

We find the good in others in many ways. Here are a few:

Listen. Take time to listen to people. When you really hear a person, when you listen and understand, you begin to discern all the good in their lives. This is critically important.

Understand. This can only come after we listen. If you are critical or judgmental, you may not understand them. Having an open mind to people is important to understanding.

Encourage the good. It’s easy to point out the bad. It’s easy to find fault. But when we encourage the good in someone, it helps to multiply the good. Think about it. If someone tells you they enjoy your smile, you’ll probably smile more!

Don’t give up. Sometimes it’s exasperating dealing with people. But don’t give up. I love to hear the words: thanks for not giving up on me! You will, too.

And for God

What? Isn’t God always there? This kind of search is a little different.

Numerous times in scripture we are told to search for God. The real question is how sincerely you want to experience God. When we fear him, as we ought to, we realize how awesome he is. This helps us approach him with confidence and with the highest respect. We must understand that we serve him, he doesn’t serve us. He loves us and will help us but we don’t treat him like he owes us something!

We want to have deep desire to experience the presence of God in a new and fresh way. We express that desire in prayer that is focused and frequent.

Spending time in the Bible also reflects the desire to experience God. It is his word, his words to our lives.

In daily life, we can also search for him. When something happens, ask: “God, are you in this?” We must nurture a growing awareness of his presence and his work all around us. More frequent thoughts of him is also a reflection of our search for him.

Keep searching and you will find. This is the promise that Jesus gave us. So, today, spend a little time searching!