What/Who Do You Treasure?

This was written by a friend. Makes us think, doesn't it?

MY DAUGHTER...BUT NOT MY NEW LEXUS

A  teenage boy walked over to his neighbor's house as his neighbor was washing and waxing the new Lexus he had just purchased.  The boy had never seen such a beautiful and expensive car up close.  With pride the neighbor showed the young man all the fancy gadgets and luxurious features of his new car and even allowed him to sit in the driver's seat.

After looking at the car for a few minutes the teen asked the man, "Do you think I could borrow this to go out on the town Saturday night?  I'm a real good driver and I'll take good care of it."

At first the man thought the boy was joking, but when he realized the boy was serious about wanting to borrow his new Lexus, the man responded indignantly.  "Are you crazy?  Do you know how precious this car is to me?  Do you realize how long I have had to work and save to be able to afford this car?  It is brand new.  It doesn't have a scratchon it and I intend to keep it that way.  You are only 16 years old and I know how 16 year old boys are...I used to be one.  You are much too inexperienced and immature for me to trust you with my new car.  What could you possibly be thinking?  What would give you the audacity to ask to use my new car to go out on the town Saturday night?"

The boy ducked his head and apologized, "I'm sorry Sir, I didn't know the car meant that much to you.  Is it still alright if I take your daughter out on the town Saturday night?"

"Sure," the man replied. "Just be sure to have her home by midnight."    

  -By Wendell Ingram, father of two girls and one boy.

Contentment

In my ladies' Bible class last night, we talked about contentment. There's a reason I chose that subject right now, right as we're all buying Christmas presents. Right after Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

Are you content?  Do you live a life of total contentment?  Most of us are content for the most part, I would imagine, but we would probably not be able to say that we live a life of total contentment.  

But godliness with contentment is great gain. 7 For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. 8 But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. 9 Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. 1 Timothy 6:6-11

Godliness WITH contentment is great gain.  

GREAT GAIN.  What does that mean?

Godliness with contentment is great gain because God knows that it is what is best for us. Godliness is great because by being godly we are being like Jesus.  But to be content - as Jesus was content - is something that will help us to be even more like Him and allow us to show Him to others.  He was able to be content throughout His life - being persecuted, being mocked, and eventually being beaten and crucified on a cross.  Nothing we go through (most likely) will be near what He went through.  Some will suffer, yes.  Some undergo horrible persecution, even now.  Some may even be killed.  But for the majority of us, we won't.  We must learn to be content, so that His light is shining brightly in our lives.  We are shining that light so that those around us are pointed towards Him.  

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin 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

“Where your heart is, there your treasure will be also.” It’s the other way around. Your heart follows your treasure. If you put your treasure into the things of the world - into trying to acquire financial gain, at all costs, your heart will follow. If you put your treasure into recreation and entertainment, your heart will follow. If you put your treasure into the kingdom of God and seek to please Him and Him only, your heart will follow.

So contentment isn’t a matter with being content with your situation in life and never trying to improve it. It’s a matter of being content with what you have — but realizing that as humans, we will always try to improve, no matter how happy we are. If we don’t, we have given up on life.

To be dependent for contentment upon whether the economy is doing well or not, whether you are in good health or not, and whether everything in your life is going well or not, you are living in bondage to the circumstances around you. Life is filled with problems and uncertainties, so living in that type of life isn't showing real contentment. Real contentment involves having the eternal perspective. It frees you from circumstances as the basis for all happiness and joy.

Contentment is not based on what you have; it is based on how you choose to view life. It is an issue of the heart.

I found a quote that seemed like a great summary on how we view what God has blessed us with. I changed a few words and added a little emphasis.

"I believe that’s why tithing is not mentioned in the New Testament. Maybe God doesn’t want us to just pay Him off with a 10% gift in the collection plate, then feel like the rest is ours to squander and do with what we please. He wants us to realize that it is ALL His. He owns iT ALL; you just manage it for Him. An outsider ought to be able to look at your checkbook (or at our bank statement) and tell who your Master is!" 

Godliness WITH contentment is GREAT GAIN.  Let's strive to live out this truth found in God's Word! He knows what is best for us!

“It isn't what you have or who you are or where you are or what you are doing that makes you happy or unhappy. It is what you think about it.” - Dale Carnegie

Treasures from the Past

I'm very sentimental when it comes to certain things, such as pictures, letters, or things that involve my family now or those who have passed on.  Yesterday, as I was looking around the house for some missing personal documents, I came across an envelope that said, "Keep - Wedding Ceremony".  I recognized it to be my maternal Grandpa's writing. 

Grandpa had done part of our wedding ceremony in 1988, and I could tell that it was his typed-out portion of the wedding vows. There was also a copy of the very detailed wedding "schedule" I had made (Yes, at 19 years old I was my own wedding planner before I ever knew there were wedding planners.) I vaguely remembered finding the wedding envelope in a drawer in Grandpa's house after he passed away.

As I dug deeper into the envelope, I found some other papers that I had no idea were there.  There was a small calendar from the grocery store he and Grandma owned for 30 plus years in Hollis, OK.  It was from the year, 1969, and had never been used.  That was the year I was born!  Apparently he and Grandma had kept it for me, but I never knew about it!

I opened up another letter, written in cursive.  It was actually two letters and I guess they had stapled them together and kept them for me, yet never said anything about them. These letters were written by me, and I'm assuming I was in 3rd or 4th grade, just since it was in cursive and because of some of the things I said.

My own children have gotten a kick out of hearing what I wrote in the letters to my grandparents.  They think it's pretty neat for me to have found something from my childhood.  I do, too!  I'm so glad they kept that letter and that I'm reading it all these years later.

Letters from the past are certainly a treasure, aren't they? They connect us to people.  They help us remember things from the past.  They contain memories about special people and special events.

Actually, we all have a letter from the past that is a treasure.  Do you know what it is?  The Bible!  It's from the past, but it's God's letter to us for the present and for the future.  The problem is that sometimes we're not quite as excited about the Bible as we are a letter from a friend or loved one.  Sometimes we don't have the same feeling about digging into God's Word as we do digging into other things.

Finding that letter that I wrote years ago is special to me and I'll treasure it always....but, may I treasure the Bible - God's letter to me even more so.

Treasures

On Labor Day, our four children spent the day working. But, it was fun labor....for the most part! They spent the day getting entries ready for the county fair, which was this past weekend.

They made cookies, bread, biscuits, crafts of all kinds, drew pictures, painted items, glued, cut, and on and on. Plus, they washed, dried, clipped and walked their goats.

By the end of the fair,  they had many ribbons and even some trophies. The funny thing is that the day before, we had given a box full of trophies BACK to the trophy store for them to recycle. And when the county extension supervisor needed some 1st place ribbons during the livestock show part of the fair, she knew she could take ours off of our winning entries and recycle them by giving them to others. Why? Well, it's simple, really. Trophies and ribbons are neat, but they are not what matter in life. No, not at all. What matters in life is that we serve God. That we live to please God. And that we store up treasures in Heaven, not here on earth. (Matthew 6:19-21)

We take pictures of the kids awards so they can look at them later on and can show them to their own children. They keep their trophies or plaques from their goats or other events for a year, but then we take the fronts off of them and give them back to the store to be used again. There are a few that mean a little more to them or to me and we keep those, but it's only a few.

I've talked about 4-H and FFA before and how I believe they are GREAT organizations for kids.  Many of you may not realize that even home-schooled children can participate in 4-H and it's for ages 9 through 18 years old.  4-H and FFA help teach children responsibility, leadership, citizenship, and many other things.  It's not about winning ribbons and trophies or plaques.  It's about teaching children to do their best  and to work hard.  It's about doing what's right and about serving and helping others...putting others before ourselves. Kind of reminds me of a GOOD BOOK I've read a lot, doesn't it you???  (Yes, the Bible!)

W want our children to learn from their experiences and activities how to live more like Christ and how to better serve God.  We don't want their goal in life to be how many awards they receive.  On this Gratituesday,  (Hosted by Laura at Heavenly Homemakers), I am grateful for treasures, but treasures in Heaven - not on earth.