How to Store Up Treasure in Heaven
By Rick Warren

“Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:21 (NIV)

You are going to enjoy forever what you invest in heaven, and you invest in heaven every time you use money for good.

Yesterday we talked about investing in eternity by using your money to grow your character, to encourage fellowship in the body of Christ, and to serve others in need. There are two more funds that you should invest in so that you can yield eternal dividends in heaven.

4. God’s Global Fund. This is when you use your money to share the Good News and bring people to Jesus. Luke 16:9 says, “Use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings” (NIV).

A lot of people have no idea what this verse means. Is it saying that you can buy friends? Not at all. It means that God wants you to invest in things that help get people into heaven so that when you get to heaven, they will welcome you there.

It’s the greatest investment of your life. Is anybody going to be in heaven because of you?

5. God’s Treasury Fund. When you give money to God as an act of worship, that’s called the Treasury Fund.

God makes a promise in Proverbs 3:9-10: “Honor the Lord by giving him the first part of all your income, and he will fill your barns with wheat and barley and overflow your wine vats with the finest wines” (TLB). “The first part of all your income” is your tithe—the 10 percent of your earnings that you give to God through your church.

You can’t really give God anything because he already owns it all. But think about the allowance you may have received as a child. If you went out and bought a birthday present for your mom, you really were using her money. Does that mean she liked the gift any less? No—because she cared more about the thought and the love behind the gift. God feels the same way about your giving.

The Bible says that wherever your treasure is, your heart will also be there. If what’s most important to you are the things of this Earth, then every day you are moving further away from your treasure. Because every day you are here on Earth, you’ve got one less day to invest in eternity. You’re moving further and further away from the things you’re going to leave behind.

But if you’re investing in God’s funds and using your money to serve God’s purposes, then you’re storing up treasure in heaven every day. You’re getting closer and closer to your treasure instead of further and further away.

Missionary Jim Elliot once said, “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.”

Are you ready to start using your money to invest in eternity? You can start by praying this prayer:

“Dear God, forgive me for spending my money on things that aren’t going to last. I want to start investing in heaven instead. Today I commit to using my money to grow in spiritual strength, wisdom, and knowledge, and become all that you want me to be. Help me to see ways that I can use what you have given me to strengthen relationships and to show love to my brothers and sisters in Christ.

“I want to invest in eternity by using my money to serve others. I want to learn to be generous and to be a blessing to others. And I want to use my money to bring people to you; I want people to be in heaven because I gave. And, Father, I want to show where my treasure is by investing in eternity through my gifts and offerings to you; I want to honor you by giving you the first part of all my income.

“I want to give up any lust for money so that you, God Almighty, will become my treasure. Help me to remember that I’m not a fool to give up what I cannot keep to gain what I cannot lose. I pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.”

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This devotional © 2018 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

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