This has been a worrying week for anyone involved in the stock market! New lows have been recorded in markets around the globe following the wobbles caused by the so-called 'credit-crunch' and the American sub-prime mortgage crisis. I suppose a lot of people are affected, especially if they are saving for a pension or have savings and investments. For those who work in the industry it must be a challenging time. Then - along came the French 'rogue trader' - robbing the huge SG Bank of 3.5 billion pounds worth of 'futures' (a kind of global stock market 'betting on the gee-gees' scheme) just to make the point that the whole world of finance is only a fictional kind of security anyway. To emphasise that point, consider the words of Jesus:
"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Matthew 6:19-21)
So where is my treasure? What do I really value? What am I prepared to give up in order to posess this? Jesus gives the answer again doesn't He? '..store up for yourselves treasures in heaven'.
What does that mean? Well it means committing our 'futures' to Him. It also means letting go of our over-depenedance on earthly posessions. We need to grow in our confidence in a heavenly Father who knows how to provide for His own. In short - it means we need to quit worrying and trust more! Now that's a challenge in any situation - but in a falling market????
