Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them.  1 John 2:15

“Thank you…”

“Thank you…”

The lead singer talks to the crowd of thirty thousand…

“Years ago we left our home town…”

“The place where we grew up …”

“Left our families…”

“Left our friends…”

“We moved to New York to chase our dream of starting a band.”

What would we give up to chase our dream?

Family?

Home town?

Would we trade the chance to follow Jesus to chase our dream?

Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?”

”…If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.”

All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?”

Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.  Mathew 19:16-22

How much are we like the rich young man?

How much time do we waste accumulating this world’s wealth and fame…

Wealth and fame we will not take with us when we leave this life?

“Surely everyone goes around like a mere phantom;
in vain they rush about, heaping up wealth
without knowing whose it will finally be.  Psalm 39:6

The lead singer is talking again…

“It’s so amazing to be here in a city we’ve never visited before and have tens of thousands of people come out to hear us.”

“It proves dreams can come true.”

What a strange thing to say…

The band is just the opening act.

I didn’t even know they were playing…

Most people in the crowd didn’t know.

Most people came here for the real star of the show…

The fireworks…

Today is the Fourth of July.

How often am I like the band?

Chasing a dream that is an illusion not only because it will fade away…

But because it exists only in my mind?

If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves.  Galatians 6:3

Striving for treasures that will vanish…

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. Matthew 6:19-20

And in striving for them, letting them steal my heart…

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.  Matthew 6:21

Note: The first version of this post appeared in July, 2015