When our three oldest sons were young, I gave them a set of colorful bandannas. They wore these in various ways, depending on that day’s particular imaginary adventure. When wearing them loosely around the front and tied behind the neck, the brothers became cowboys. Pulling the bandannas up to cover their mouths and noses (as some do now for COVID) made them bandits or bank robbers. And to transform themselves into pirates, the boys placed the bandanna triangles atop their heads and tied them in the back. A black eye patch finished off the look.
In stories like Treasure Island, pirates always follow a map to find the gold. Once at the spot they must dig and dig until they hit upon the treasure chest. Fortunately our boys never tried to dig up the back yard looking for treasure. But the truth is that anything worth finding is worth digging for.
In Matthew 13:44 Jesus illustrated this truth regarding the ultimate treasure, “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from joy over it he goes and sells everything that he has, and buys that field.” The problem with many of us is that we don’t want to take the time to dig. In our fast-paced, fast food society we prefer instant rewards for little effort. If it takes someone more than fifteen minutes to tell us something, we run out of patience. (Never mind that we’ll spend hours sitting in front of the TV absorbing whatever messages are broadcast!)
Taking the time to read God’s Word, to dig into it as for treasure, takes time and requires scheduling it into our days. Exercising our minds to absorb spiritual truth is just as important as exercising our bodies. Choosing what sorts of ideas and philosophies we allow into our hearts (via our ears and eyes) requires discipline and planning.
Notice the eagerness of the person in the hidden treasure illustration above. He may have had a lot going on in his life but he wasn’t “too busy,” or waiting for a time he “felt like it” to take action. No! While could have drug his feet and made excuses, he recognized the value and seized his opportunity! Remember that the folks to whom Jesus originally gave this parable had no running water, no electricity, and no motorized vehicles. And yet He was encouraging them to make it a priority to discipline their minds even with their labor-intensive lifestyle.
Compared to them, our task is easy. We can listen to recordings of the Bible or biblical teaching while we cook or drive. The internet abounds with Bible translations and recorded teachings. And libraries give us access to all sorts of truth-filled books. (Remember what books are?)
You don’t have to don a bandanna and wear a pirate’s eye patch to dig for God’s hidden treasure. Just make time in your day, every day, to seek out and meditate on the truth and you’ll find the treasure–the truth that God loves you, wants to give you wisdom, and has the power to lead you through the most trying circumstances. THAT is treasure worth finding!
