Lenten Lessons -- Day 16

Today's Scriptures: Jeremiah 17:5-10; Luke 16:19-31

What do we trust in? Jeremiah says that if our trust is in anything other than God we will end up like a barren bush in the desert. Jesus says that if we find our consolation only in what we have here and now we will end up in torment.

It wasn't that the rich man was completely bad. he was just shortsighted. He didn't see Lazarus just outside his gate. The rich man enjoyed all the good things of life and then discovered too late that he was the one (not Lazarus) that had been in misery.

Lent is a good time for us to look inside ourselves to see what is truly important to us. What are our priorities? What are we willing to give up and for what? How do we make our decisions? Are we willing to suffer? What are we willing to sacrifice for?

It is not easy, not is it always pleasant to look at our own value system. We can easily deceive ourselves. That's why we need to ask God for courage, honesty and even perseverance when we come to grips with who we are. We need to know our hearts in order to change what needs to be changed. Let us learn from this miserable rich man, so that we can avoid making the same mistakes he made. Let us use this Lenten season to change our hearts for the better!