Are You Trying to Build a Bigger Barn?

All Christ followers are headed for heaven. We can either leave behind the material things that once brought us happiness, or take the eternal kingdom acts with us to Jesus. If the Lord has gifted you with abundance in a certain area of life, how are you using it to further His message of the gospel? How are you creating boundaries to not become covetous or prideful? May we use all of our resources to glorify the Lord.

Is there something that comes to your mind as a “barn” that you are trying to build bigger? Has the Lord given you more than enough, but you are getting greedy in desiring more? Maybe it is a business. Perhaps it is your home. It could even be the desire to keep having more and more children even though it is not a wise move for your family. Is it the shoes in your closet? Is it the amount of money you are willing to spend on football tickets? Could it be that you have a certain number of followers on social media, but keep wanting more? Your barn could even be the number of attendees at your church or event.

Whatever your barn is, lay it down before God today. Ask Him to reveal gratitude for what He has provided and convict your heart in the ways you have idolized control and excess. When our focus is on our barns, we miss the beauty of Jesus. We start to build our temporary kingdoms instead of the Lord’s everlasting kingdom.

We can each act like the rich fool at times. It is easy to feel overwhelmed by the “have it all” mentality of our culture today. However, when we have Jesus, we already have it all. We can fight against this mindset of the fool by reframing our priorities, remembering our life goal, and surrendering the barns that we try to build. May we take this day and every day to focus our hearts on the First and most important Treasure – Jesus. Everything else will not compare. Whether our barns are small or large, the foundation of our identity will be grounded in Christ.

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Photo credit: Unsplash/Sharon McCutcheon

Emma Danzey’s mission in life stems from Ephesians 3:20-21, to embrace the extraordinary. One of her greatest joys is to journey with the Lord in His Scriptures. She is wife to Drew and mom to Graham. Emma serves alongside her husband in ministry, she focuses most of her time in the home, but loves to provide articles on the Bible, life questions, and Christian lifestyle. Her article on Interracial Marriage was the number 1 on Crosswalk in 2021. Most recently, Emma released Treasures for Tots, (Scripture memory songs) and multiple books and devotionals for young children. During her ministry career, Emma has released Wildflower: Blooming Through Singleness, two worship EP albums, founded and led Polished Conference Ministries, and ran the Refined Magazine. You can view her articles on her blog at emmadanzey.wordpress.com and check out her Instagram @Emmadanzey.