The Field

<p>READ: <a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=MATTHEW+13%3A44-45%3B+PHILIPPIANS+3%3A7-21&amp;version=NIV">MATTHEW 13:44-45; PHILIPPIANS 3:7-21</a></p> <p>The luxury car went first. Then the jeep. Then the convertible was sold too. Neighbors scratched their heads, and whispers started running through the neighborhood. Lawsuits? Debts? Drugs? No one knew.</p> <p>All the designer clothes went next. And the shoes. Instead of high-end heels, she was seen walking around town in dirty old sneakers, and her shirts and jeans looked worn and outdated. The whispers intensified. Maybe her company was sued and her day in court didn't go well. Maybe drugs were messing with her head.</p> <p>When the house went up for sale, the neighbors were shocked. It had been in her family for generations. She must be desperate, they whispered to one another.</p> <p>The day the new owners were scheduled to move in, she gathered her few remaining items and put them in a plastic bag. She left the house key under the doormat and threw the bag in the trash can on the curb. Eager to begin her journey, she didn't even turn to give the house one last look before crossing the street.</p> <p>She started walking. She didn't have enough money left to catch a bus. Mile after mile she walked, her muscles aching more with each passing hour. When rain began pouring from the sky, she pulled the frayed hood of her sweatshirt over her head and kept walking.</p> <p>When she got to the edge of her new property, her steps grew lighter. Burrs stuck to her sneakers and thorns poked at the thin threads of her clothing as she started running through the brambles. It didn't matter. She would have new clothes soon enough. Clothes that would never wear out.</p> <p>Soon she came to a large boulder in the middle of the field. She gently touched the side of the stone, and it began to roll, revealing a hole just big enough for a person to fit through. When she looked down into it, she felt a pure, golden warmth swathe her face. Without