WHAT ARE YOU CHASING?

Jun 14, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: Earthly Treasures: Vulnerable to Storms, Rust, and Thieves

Life’s most dependable things—homes, jobs, reputations—crumble like sandcastles before waves. Jesus warned that moth, rust, and thieves dismantle what we build, yet we still anchor hope in shifting ground. Temporary treasures demand constant protection but offer no eternal security. Even success becomes a prison when it defines our worth. The hurricane that flattens a lifetime’s work in minutes mirrors how earthly stability deceives. True peace comes only through unshakable allegiance. [07:43]

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:19-21, ESV)

Reflection: What earthly treasure have you been clinging to as your “backup plan” if God doesn’t come through? How might this attachment be quietly draining your spiritual vitality?

Day 2: Chasing What Can’t Last: The Moving Finish Line

We exhaust ourselves sprinting toward goals that keep shifting—approval, promotions, or the next purchase. Like children discarding toys, we trade temporary highs for eternal weight. Jesus watches us pant after mirages while living water waits. Every “finally” moment (the raise, the relationship) becomes a new starting line. The cycle continues until we ask: What’s fueling this race? [11:05]

“He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity.” (Ecclesiastes 5:10, ESV)

Reflection: When have you achieved a long-pursued goal only to feel empty afterward? What does that reveal about your heart’s true hunger?

Day 3: Where Your Treasure Resides, Your Heart Learns to Follow

Repeated investments train hearts like muscles—scroll time fuels anxiety, while Scripture steadies. We become what we behold: envy grows from comparison, restlessness from craving applause. Jesus flips the script—our actions don’t just reflect desires, they form them. Each choice to pray or panic, serve or self-protect, writes eternity into our neural pathways. [16:47]

“Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.” (Proverbs 4:23, ESV)

Reflection: What daily habit—seemingly small—is quietly training your heart toward fear rather than faith? What holy practice could replace it?

Day 4: Seeking First the Kingdom: The Right Order for Your Soul

God refuses to be another item on our to-do list between errands and emails. “First” reshapes everything—work becomes worship, money a ministry tool, relationships holy ground. This isn’t abandoning responsibilities but baptizing them. The Father’s promise to “add all things” frees us from clutching outcomes. [24:41]

“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” (Matthew 6:33, ESV)

Reflection: What practical area (finances, career, relationships) have you not yet surrendered to God’s rule? What first step would demonstrate trust in His ordering?

Day 5: The Father’s Provision: Better Than Spilled Milk and Lost Jobs

God’s care outlasts layoffs, diagnoses, and broken dreams. He replaces spilled milk with whole cows, redirects hearts when false gods fall. Medical mysteries and financial reversals become testimonies when we trace His hand. Provision isn’t always plenty—it’s always purposeful. The same God who clothes lilies armors us with imperishable hope. [35:23]

“And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:19, ESV)

Reflection: What specific fear about tomorrow have you been clutching like a security blanket? How might releasing it to God transform your today?

Sermon Summary

Matthew 6 points to the chase that owns a life and asks hard questions about it. Jesus draws a line between treasures on earth and treasures in heaven, then names how fragile the earthly pile is. Moth, rust, and thieves stand in for decay, change, and loss, whether that looks like a shrinking account, a fading platform, or a storm that wipes out what took years to build. The word treasure presses deeper than money. It reaches approval, comfort, control, achievement, reputation, even the image a person curates for others. A treasure becomes anything that starts carrying the weight of hope.

The text does not scold ordinary needs. It exposes how urgency pulls the heart toward what is most visible and most rewarding in the moment, and how the finish line keeps moving. Jesus’ warning is mercy. He is not stealing joy. He is rescuing people from building on things that cannot keep their promises. He then gives the sentence that searches a soul for a lifetime: where the treasure sits, the heart follows. The direction matters. Desire is not just a driver. It is a learner. Wherever time, money, attention, and imagination are placed, affection slowly bends. If comparison gets the devotion, envy becomes the ruler. If admiration is the project, restlessness flares when overlooked. If control is the hope, panic spikes when life will not obey.

The King’s antidote is not denial of responsibility. It is reordering. Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. First does not cancel jobs, bills, or parenting. First puts them under God. Work becomes a place to honor Christ. Money becomes worship and generosity. Relationships become love, truth, forgiveness, and service. Plans open their hands to the Father who knows. And the promise stands. All these things will be added, not as a prosperity scheme, but as a Father’s care for daily bread. Jesus suffered. His apostles suffered. Seeking first does not remove every hardship. It removes the tyranny of lesser masters. Money can be used without being worshiped. Success can be received without thinking too much of oneself. Comfort can be enjoyed without becoming the boss. Loss can be grieved without losing hope.

Jesus does not only say stop treasuring earth. He offers a better treasure. He offers himself. Then he asks again, what is being chased. Let the calendar talk. Let the bank account testify. Let anxiety name what it fears to lose. Bring the truth to God. Confess. Release. Restore order. God will move false gods out of the way. The kingdom cannot be an afterthought. It must be first.

Key Takeaways

1. Treasure carries the weight of hope [07:22] A life always loads hope onto something. When that something is approval, control, or image, the soul becomes as fragile as its idol. Naming the real treasure is not condemnation but clarity, the doorway to honest repentance. Jesus’ categories cut through fog and show what can actually bear eternal weight. [07:22]
2. Investment trains the heart’s desires [16:11] The heart is a learner, not just a leader. What receives time, money, attention, and imagination becomes the tutor of affection. Over months and years, habits disciple love toward envy, restlessness, or panic, or they bend it toward the King. Rearranging investments is how desire gets re-educated. [16:11]
3. First means everything under God [24:41] First is not an extra task at the edge of a crowded life. First is the order that puts work, money, relationships, plans, and sexuality beneath the King’s good rule. In that order, ordinary life turns sacramental and steady, because purpose stops shifting with circumstances. First gathers a scattered soul into one aim. [24:41]
4. The Father adds needed things [25:29] The promise is not luxury but provision. The Father knows, cares, and is able, even when the path includes suffering. Trusting this frees a person from frantic clutching and frees resources for worship and generosity. Daily bread becomes a testimony, not a bargaining chip. [25:29]
5. Repentance recenters a scattered life [15:24] When the chase is exposed, despair is not the invitation. Return is. Confession loosens the fingers of lesser masters, and reordered practices teach the heart to love what lasts. Repentance is not just turning from sin; it is turning toward a better treasure. [15:24]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[02:59] - Temporary or kingdom treasure?
[04:02] - The weight of expectations
[05:11] - What are you chasing?
[06:53] - Earthly treasure is temporary
[10:39] - Chasing goals that keep moving
[11:50] - Diagnostics for desire
[15:24] - Repent and recentre your life
[16:11] - Where treasure leads the heart
[22:31] - Seek first the kingdom
[24:41] - First puts everything in place
[25:29] - The Father adds what you need
[26:42] - Freedom from lesser masters
[27:44] - The better treasure is Jesus
[36:38] - Jobs and people are not gods

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
Matthew 6:19-21, 24, 33 (ESV)
19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
24 “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.
33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

Observation questions

What two types of treasures does Jesus contrast in Matthew 6:19-20, and what specific vulnerabilities do earthly treasures face?
According to Matthew 6:21, what relationship does Jesus highlight between our treasure and our heart?
In Matthew 6:33, what does Jesus command believers to prioritize, and what promise does he attach to this command?
What examples of “treasures” beyond money were mentioned in the sermon (e.g., approval, control)? [07:22]

Interpretation questions

Why does Jesus use imagery like moths, rust, and thieves to describe earthly treasures? How might this apply to modern-day pursuits like reputation or career success?
How does the idea that “the heart is a learner, not just a leader” (from the sermon [16:11]) reshape our understanding of habits like comparison or overworking?
What does it mean practically to “seek first the kingdom” in areas like work, finances, or relationships? How does this differ from treating faith as an “afterthought”? [24:41]
Jesus says anxiety reveals what we fear losing (Matthew 6:25-34). How might this connect to the sermon’s claim that “treasure carries the weight of hope”? [07:22]

Application questions

If your calendar or bank statement were examined, what would they reveal about your current “treasures”? What small, practical step could you take this week to reorder one area? [28:52]
The sermon says, “Anxiety names what it fears to lose.” What specific fear does your anxiety point to (e.g., financial stability, approval), and how could trusting God’s care loosen its grip? [29:21]
Think of a habit or investment (time, money, attention) that’s quietly training your heart toward envy, control, or restlessness. What new habit could redirect your affection toward Christ? [16:47]
How might your work, relationships, or daily responsibilities look different if you saw them as “spaces to honor Christ” rather than means to achieve personal security or status? [24:41]
The sermon warns that “temporary things cannot carry eternal weight.” Is there a goal or pursuit you’re clinging to that Jesus might be inviting you to release? What would repentance look like here? [15:24]
When have you experienced God’s provision in a way that deepened your trust in His care? How could remembering this help you seek His kingdom first during future uncertainties?

Sermon Clips

42s

#SeekFirstKingdom

“Jesus lovely lovingly disrupts the order and says, seek first the kingdom of god and his righteousness. Yeah. First doesn't mean you quit your job, ignore your family, stop paying your bills, or abandon practical responsibilities. First means everything else finds its proper place under god. Your work becomes a place to honor Christ. Your comes a tool for worship and generosity. Your relationships become spaces for love, truth, forgiveness, and service. Your plans become open handed before the lord. Your future becomes entrusted to the father who knows what you need.”

32s

#WhereTreasureGoesHeartFollows

“Notice the direction Jesus gives. We often assume our heart leads and everything else follows. We think if I care about something long and hard enough, then I'll invest in it. That's true to a point, of course. Love often leads to action, but Jesus also shows us that investment shapes love. Where we place our treasure, our heart begins to follow. Where we give our time, money, imagination, attention, and energy, our desires get formed.”

36s

#EternalTreasures

“Here's a helpful definition. A treasure is anything that begins to carry the weight of our hope. Jesus says, there are treasures on earth, and there are treasures in heaven. Earthly treasures are vulnerable. Moth destroys fabric. Rust corrodes metal. Thieves break in and steal our possessions. In other words, everything we gather here is exposed to decay, to loss, to change, and uncertainty. Everything we see here is temporary.”

36s

#EarthlyThingsAreTemporary

“The details look different today, though the reality is the same. A bank account can shrink. A job can change. A reputation can be damaged. A body can age. A relationship can shift. A dream can fall apart. A house can need repairs. The market can crash, and you lose your investment. A platform that you have now can fade over time. Something that felt so dependable can suddenly remind us it was never meant to hold our lives together.”

30s

#ReturnToTrueDevotion

“These questions are uncomfortable, but they're merciful. They help us see what has been getting our devotion. What you chase shows your value. And if you discover that you've been chasing something temporary, the invitation of Jesus is not despair. It's repentance. It's return. It's a gracious recentering of life around treasure that last. And understand that your treasure shapes your heart.”

32s

#RighteousnessFirst

“To seek his righteous means we pursue the life that is right before god. We don't simply ask what do I want, what will people think, or what helps me get ahead. We learn to ask what honors the lord. What reflects the character of Jesus? We learn to ask what would Jesus do? Amen. This is where the hidden treasure of the kingdom confronts our daily lives because many of us seek the kingdom, but first, we seek stability.”

41s

#ExamineYourPursuits

“Almost everyone in this world is searching for something, but our pursuits reveal what we truly treasure. Jesus invites us to examine whether we are chasing temporary rewards or seeking first the hidden treasure of god's kingdom. Most of us don't wake up in the morning and say, today, I'm gonna chase the wrong things. Nobody starts today with a cup of coffee in one hand and a book in the other thinking, I'd really like to spend my life on things that don't last. We don't plan to be distracted. We don't schedule anxiety.”

30s

#StopChasingShiftingGoals

“Jesus isn't saying earthly things are evil. He's teaching us that earthly treasures are temporary, and temporary things cannot carry eternal weight. That lands close to home for some of us because many of us are exhausted from chasing things that keep moving. You ever had a goal that you were given and you reached the goal but then the goal changed and it moved? Yeah. You ever been on the job and they tell you do this?”

35s

#WhatAreYouChasing

“Before long, our days become full. Our minds become crowded, and our hearts start attaching itself to whatever feels most urgent, most visible, and most rewarding in the moment. So today, we're starting with the question that may sound simple, but if we answer honestly, it can rearrange our life. I would like to ask you today, what are you chasing? What are you pursuing in life? What do you desire life?”

33s

#KingdomNotAnAfterthought

“And those answers come, don't hide them from god, but bring them to him. Confess what needs be confessed. Release what needs to be released. What order what needs to be restored. The kingdom cannot remain an afterthought in life. As though someone else just placed it second. But you gotta make the kingdom first. Not when you find time for it to be first, but you gotta make the kingdom first. Right. You gotta have a desire in your heart that god is first in my life.”

36s

#GodProvidesNotProsperity

“He's talking about the needs he just mentioned in the surrounding verses, food, drink, clothing, daily provision. The father knows. The father cares. The father is not unaware of your life and the father is able to provide. Has god ever provided anything for anybody? Yes. Yes. This does not mean that every Christian will become rich or that life will become easy when you first seek god. The bible never promised that. Stop stop falling for these get rich quick schemes and the prosperity gospel.”

40s

#TreasureBeyondMoney

“In our text, Jesus uses the word treasure. word matters because it's speaking about what we've stored up, what we value, what we protect, what we count on, and what we'll keep reaching for. Treasure isn't limited to money. Let's take your mind off money for a moment. Money is certainly included, but treasure can be approval from others. Comfort, achievement, influence, beauty, reputation, romance, control, success, security, even the image we want other people to have of us.”

36s

#SermonForEverydayLife

“In Matthew chapter six, Jesus is preaching what we commonly call the sermon on the mount. He's teaching ordinary people how to live under the rain and the rule of god. He's talking to people with jobs, families, needs, worries, temptations, and limited resources. These weren't people living drenched from everyday concerns. They understood the pressure of food, clothing, money, reputation, and looking for tomorrow. Don't you feel that today? Yeah. You have concerns?”

31s

#GuardAgainstComparison

“That's why this teaching reaches beyond a single direction. Jesus is talking about the slow shaping of a person. If you give your best attention to comparison, your heart will begin to live under the rule of envy. If you give your best energy to being admired by others, your heart will become restless whenever you are overlooked. They didn't put my name on the program. Nobody ever gave me an offering. Pastor never said thank you to me.”

28s

#FeedYourHeartWisely

“This is where we need to be honest and gentle at the same time. Some of us are frustrated because we want a heart that love god deeply, but we keep feeding our hearts with things that make love for god feel distant. What are you feeding your heart? Think about a marriage or a close friendship. Affection doesn't grow mainly because someone says this relationship is important to me. Affection grows as time is given.”

35s

#HabitsShapePriority

“We may believe that the kingdom is first, but our habits have been quietly teaching our hearts that everything else comes first. That can happen without a big dramatic rebellion. It can happen through ordinary neglect. Yeah. A little less prayer. A little less we need to do a little less scrolling. A little less generosity. We need to stop having so much self protection. We have a little less worship. You need to have a little less worry. We have a little less obedience.”

40s

#ItsNotOverGodIsAble

“Yes, the milk has been spilled, but don't cry over the spilled milk. If you do cry, wipe your eyes and shake yourself and say the god that I serve, he not only can replace the milk, he can give me the whole cow. Stop your worrying. Stop your complaining. Stop saying it's all over for me. It ain't over. Not not not talking about a fat lady singing. It's not over till god says, it's over. And as long as you got breath in your body, in your right mind, it ain't over yet. Pastor, you don't understand.”

30s

#GodFirstThenAllElse

“Now I love lady Diane, and I treasure her, but I love god even more. I love Jesus even more because if I don't have Jesus, lady Diane can't put me in heaven as much as she loves me. I can't put her in heaven. I won't hang up for her hang ups. I didn't die for her. Yes. We love each other, but god. God is our source. God is our provider. God's kingdom is first.”

32s

#GodRemovesFalseIdols

“He'll take them out of your life. He'll tear down your statues. He'll tear down your false gods. He'll move people out of your life that are in the way of you receiving the best life god has for you. You wanna live your best life? Put god first. You wanna live out the enemy ruling everything? Put god first. See, even when you lose something, you realize that god is able to give you better than what you had before.”

43s

#DontGiveGodTheLeftovers

“We don't usually make a conscious decision to give our best energy to temporary things while giving god whatever is left at the end. And yet, if we're honest, life has a way of pulling us along. Life has a way of luring us to sleep, doesn't it? Yeah. There are bills to pay, kids to raise, jobs to do, messages to answer, errand run, goals to meet, relationships to manage, and expectations to carry because somebody is expecting a certain degree your personality.”

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WHAT ARE YOU CHASING?

Devotional

Day 1: Earthly Treasures: Vulnerable to Storms, Rust, and Thieves

Day 2: Chasing What Can’t Last: The Moving Finish Line

Day 3: Where Your Treasure Resides, Your Heart Learns to Follow

Day 4: Seeking First the Kingdom: The Right Order for Your Soul

Day 5: The Father’s Provision: Better Than Spilled Milk and Lost Jobs

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

WHAT ARE YOU CHASING?

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