July 30

Luke 12:13-21 (Click to see scripture)

Bible in One Year Passages:

Journal Entry

Scripture

“But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?' This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.” (Luke 12:20-21)

Observation

Here Jesus warns us to guard our hearts against all kinds of greed as we live in a success-driven world. As a master teacher, Jesus tells a story of a rich man who is driven to live a life of abundance, building bigger barns to store all his stuff. Obviously, he lived his life with wrong ambitions and wrong attitudes, thinking that he would be around to enjoy a life of comfort in his self-made kingdom. His real problem is not his wealth, but rather that he has no room for God. God calls this man “fool” for living a life for himself with the addiction of more when he couldn’t even guarantee his next breath.

Application

This powerful parable makes me examine my heart and ask, “What do I live for?” or "Whom do I live for?" I live in a world that tempts me everyday to live a life of greed … more power, more recognition, more education, more possessions, and more money … to build a bigger barn for myself. However, this is so foolish because at the end of the day, I can’t take any of these, and nothing can satisfy my greedy heart. Instead of living a life for myself building my own little kingdom, I want to live a life for God, building His unshakable kingdom.

Prayer

Lord, I thank you for granting me a moment to pause to examine my heart this morning. Lord, forgive me for my pride whenever I am tempted to think that I have what it takes and to live a life for my own glory. Lord, I recognize today that what really matters is not what I have done for myself, but what You have already done for me. Lord, help me to make room for you every minute of the day. Lord, I want to be rich toward you.

--Stephen Han