Wu Chen is not a trusting man. Especially when it comes to his money. So instead of investing his life savings or putting them in a bank account, Chen chose to bury the cash. He took all of the savings from his work as a fisherman plus a pension payment he had received and put the money in a plastic bag. Then he buried the bag near his home in the Sichuan Province of China.

When Chen dug up the bag five years later, he discovered his error. The bag he had used wasn’t airtight. Moisture had gotten in, and most of the cash was rotten. Fortunately for the distraught fisherman, the untrustworthy local bank was willing to exchange about half the bills for usable ones.

The story reminds me of something that Jesus taught his followers:

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).

Notice that Jesus isn’t just talking about how to keep your money safe. He’s talking about how to keep your heart safe. “[W]here your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

So instead of burying your money in the ground, you should be storing up treasure in heaven. How do you do that? The apostle Paul explains:

Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life (1 Timothy 6:17-19).

If you want to be rich, it’s not that hard. Do good. Be rich in good deeds. Be generous. And be willing to share.

In that way, you’ll gather treasure that no one can steal, and nothing can destroy. Here’s to your future prosperity!

-tarcher