THE STORY IS TOLD OF A MAN who was given a tour of one of the most impressive homes in a particular city. The rooms seemed to go on without end, and each one was more wonderful that the one before it. Marble, gold, and fine woods were everywhere. Finally, the visitor was asked how he liked the house. He replied, “These are the things that make dying hard.”
Someone forgot to tell that man that if you have something you can’t live without, you don’t own it; it owns you!
Materialism can do that. It can wrap itself around one’s soul, till the thought of losing stuff is about the worse thing on earth! But don’t tell that to those living in southern California who recently lost their homes in the wildfires. They had a reality check. Again and again, I saw interviews of folks who had their homes and all their possessions burned until there was nothing but ashes left. One refrain was repeated over and over: “We have our lives and that’s what is really important.”
Adversity of any kind has its upside; it can cause one to re-evaluate. It helps us to look once again at our list of priorities. Perhaps such things as faith, family, and friends need to be moved back up to the pre-eminent place. After all, there are only two things we can take with us when we leave this planet: our relationship with God and our character. Seems to me that we should spend more time developing these in lieu of acquiring “stuff.”
Some people devote an inordinate amount of time and energy chasing after things. They remind me of a bulldog chasing a train: what’s he going to do with it if he catches it?
Money has power. But it also has weaknesses. For instance, money can buy land, but not love; bonds, but not brotherhood; gold, but not gladness; silver, but not sincerity; hospitals, but not health; condominiums, but not character; houses, but not homes; timber, but not truth; ranches, but not righteousness; commodities, but not comfort; furs, but not friends.
To save your money you must share it; to love it is to lose it; and to invest it forever, you must put it in things eternal!
Someone forgot to tell that man that if you have something you can’t live without, you don’t own it; it owns you!
Materialism can do that. It can wrap itself around one’s soul, till the thought of losing stuff is about the worse thing on earth! But don’t tell that to those living in southern California who recently lost their homes in the wildfires. They had a reality check. Again and again, I saw interviews of folks who had their homes and all their possessions burned until there was nothing but ashes left. One refrain was repeated over and over: “We have our lives and that’s what is really important.”
Adversity of any kind has its upside; it can cause one to re-evaluate. It helps us to look once again at our list of priorities. Perhaps such things as faith, family, and friends need to be moved back up to the pre-eminent place. After all, there are only two things we can take with us when we leave this planet: our relationship with God and our character. Seems to me that we should spend more time developing these in lieu of acquiring “stuff.”
Some people devote an inordinate amount of time and energy chasing after things. They remind me of a bulldog chasing a train: what’s he going to do with it if he catches it?
Money has power. But it also has weaknesses. For instance, money can buy land, but not love; bonds, but not brotherhood; gold, but not gladness; silver, but not sincerity; hospitals, but not health; condominiums, but not character; houses, but not homes; timber, but not truth; ranches, but not righteousness; commodities, but not comfort; furs, but not friends.
To save your money you must share it; to love it is to lose it; and to invest it forever, you must put it in things eternal!
posted by kazookid | 1:19 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home