All that glitters

TACT IS THE ART OF MAKING YOUR GUESTS FEEL AT HOME WHEN YOU WISH THEY WERE!
- Unknown


All that Glitters About a hundred years ago, "Gold Fever" hit North America. Thousands of men and several women followed their dream of striking it rich from a stake in the Klondike, only to face a harsh climate, expensive "required" items, treacherous mountain passes, amoral con artists, uncontrollable flooding created by the spring thaw, bacteria-laced drinking water in makeshift tent cities, and digging through granite-like permafrost at the rate of about a foot a day. Very few found even enough gold to pay for their trip home. About a year ago, the Bre-X company started a new sort of "Gold Fever" in North America. Samples from geologists revealed veins of the precious metal in superbly dense quantities in the hills of Indonesia. Money stampeded into the company as investors dreamed of multiplying their nest eggs. When the samples proved to be falsified, fortunes were lost in the devaluation of Bre-X stock. Almost two thousand years ago, Jesus warned his followers that the riches of this world would one day perish. He instructed that no one could effectively serve both God and money; we must choose to pursue either one or the other. If we choose money, any treasures we acquire, any temporary pleasure we may experience, will be lost to us when we die. But the treasures we amass in heaven while we pursue the way of God will never be exhausted. We may or may not experience material success in this life, but those who follow God live with the joy of knowing that we are the much-loved children of the King of all Kings and will be welcomed with celebration and a rewarding eternal life upon our return home. Such a life has meaning and purpose. Where is your treasure accumulating?