Today I am going on a treasure hunt.
Old folklore says there is a pot of gold at the end of every rainbow, yet no one that I know of has ever found it. Pirates in days of old searched for buried treasures filled with gold doubloons and precious jewels. Even now days there are treasure hunters who search for ancient treasures lost under the sea or the sand. The treasures of the Titanic has been a popular place to search. The pyramids of Egypt contain treasures. Jewelry stores are filled with treasure seekers searching for pieces of fine gold or silver, diamonds and emeralds, rubies and sapphires. It seems like everyone is searching for a treasure these days. But why?
People are looking for happiness. People are looking for joy. People are looking for prosperity. People are looking for something or someone to fill that void in their heart. The emptiness and sadness of our lives sometimes seemed linked to the fact that we have no real treasures, no real joy, no real happiness, no real peace. Maybe if we change our appearance, then we will be happy. Maybe if we buy something expensive, then we will have our treasure. Maybe if we get that promotion, then we will find our joy. Maybe if we have lots of money in our bank account, then we will have peace.
For thousands of years, people have been going on treasure hunts searching for what seems to be that hidden treasure that will finally make us feel joyful, happy, and peaceful. I too have gone on these treasure hunts hoping to find my joy, my happiness and my peace. I longed to find that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow , but alas I always came up empty. I searched and searched and searched for years. There were days I felt so drained emotionally and physically. Searching for a treasure chest is not easy work.
For years I struggled within myself. Privately I would cry and scream, hoping there was more to life than what I was feeling. My husband and my children were my true treasures but there still seemed to be a void. A spot that no treasure seemed to fill and a spot I could never expect my husband or children to fill. I found that treasure 8 years ago when I accepted Jesus Christ as my Savior.
Matthew 13:44 "God's kingdom is like a treasure hidden in a field for years and then accidently found by a trespasser. The finder is ecstatic--what a find!--and proceeds to sell everything he owns to raise money and buy that field."
I found my treasure chest, my pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, Jesus Christ. Oh I knew who He was I believed He was my Savior, after all I went to church every Sunday. It wasn't until 8 years ago when I verbally, out loud and in front of 17,000 women stated that "Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior" that I realized that this had been the treasure I had been searching for all my life.
I know for some of you this is hard to understand, but let me honestly tell you that when I verbally stated that, out loud, standing up in the St. Louis Rams stadium, I changed. That void, that emptiness was filled instantly. I found my joy, my happiness and my peace in Jesus Christ.
No matter how much you change your physical appearance, no matter how many diamonds or how much gold you buy, no matter how many divorces and remarriages you go through, no matter how much you blame society or someone else, no one and nothing can steal your joy, your peace or your happiness. My friend you are searching for Jesus Christ. Whether you want to admit or not, there is a void in you heart that can only be filled by Jesus Christ. And until you confess with your mouth that Jesus Christ is your Lord and Savior you will keep searching.
Pretend all you want. Continue to hide your sorrows behind your fake smile, continue to blame all your problems on someone else or a God you say you don't believe in, continue searching amongst all the treasures your money can buy, you still have a void, whether you admit or not. I can see it in your eyes, I can hear it in your voice and I can feel it in your touch. Your words are the evidence I hear, your anger is the evidence I hear, your denial is the evidence I hear.
So today, I challenge you drop to your knees and confess Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. My friends, that is the treasure you have searching for all of your life. He is waiting for you. He loves you! Turn to Him today and get ready to open that treasure chest of true joy, true peace and true happiness.
Jesus Christ, today I accept you as my Lord and Savior. I surrender all that I am and all that I have. Fill my heart with your joy, your peace and your happiness, in Jesus name I pray, amen!
Thanks for posting this Debra - it was certainly a strong read. I think sometimes that the reason God gives us different denominations and devotions is to account for different temperaments and ways of coming to Him. For myself, I don't think I could find my way to God if I tried to find it in a relationship with him. I'm just not wired to 'do' relationships of any sort (as a failed marriage and a very small circlelofvfriebds can attest). But rules, customs, laws? These are things I understand and that make sense to me as a way of relating to others. I guess that's why I came to Catholicism as an adult: it offered me a path to Him that I could put mind, body and soul into. Bless you for sharing!
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