Now that I am attending Duke Divinity School, I am learning how to “exegete” scripture, which means simply to analyze it for its true meaning. I cannot just “read” scripture any more. There’s no more “Oh, that’s a cute story of Jonah in the mouth of the whale,” or “Ha! Noah’s neighbors must have gotten a kick out of him building that ark in his front yard.” No, I now have to say “Hmmm, I wonder what that means?” There is, of course, a lot of joy in doing this, but at times I do wish I could just read.

Well, not too long ago I came across a verse that made no sense to me, so the exegete in me sprung into action. Bibles were all over the floor (if you’re attending Divinity school, you apparently have to have every single Bible ever produced), Bible commentaries were out, and Greek Web sites were up. I was ready to go. What verse would cause such a commotion? A simple verse, really: Luke 12:33—“Sell your possessions, and give alms. Make purses for yourselves that do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.”

“Make purses for yourselves”? What does Jesus mean by “make purses for yourselves”? In Luke, Jesus tells the disciples five times to take nothing with them. And yet, this time he tells them to make purses for themselves.

During my rummaging around, my husband asked me what all of the commotion was about. I brushed him off; but he wouldn’t go away! I told him “Well, it says ‘make purses’; now why would He say make ‘purses’?” And my husband answered simply, “Don’t you imagine He means ‘spiritual’ purses?” In my mind, I confess I scoffed: “Yeah, right; spiritual purses—great insight.”

I tried to go to sleep and the image of a purse and its contents came to me: A wallet for giving alms and for getting alms—doing good things for others, giving one’s time and energy as well as financial support. I envisioned the pictures of our spiritual children and pictures of those whom we hold dear in our prayers; a Kleenex for the joyous times or when we are grieving with a friend, and a mirror for reflecting on who we are not only in our own eyes, but also in the eyes of the Lord.

When I woke up, it all made sense. What matters is not how much money we make, the great trips we can take, or the clothes that we wear. What matters are the treasures in heaven that we store in our purse every single day. It is the meal we make for a friend who is sick. It is holding the hand of a sister or brother in need. It is crying with someone else and being that shoulder to lean on. It is taking time to help serve food at the local mission. These are the things that will go into our spiritual purse. These are the things we will take with us when our life here comes to an end. Everything else will be mere dust, but those spiritual things will have no end.