PIling up treasures on Earth or In Heaven?

I've been seeing news about Mozart constantly ever since I visited his living house in Salzburg, Austria. In fact, I'm fascinated by his history and his past works that I wiki-ed about him and found out even more interesting stuff. I began to fall in love with his musics again. Last few days when I opened up this email, an excerpt from Agape Ministries, it was about Mozart and his contributions left in this world. I could not agree enough that we sometimes overlooked the fact that we are so greedy in this world that we want to own everything. We want the best among the others, we want what others don't have and we want all that is superior of others. What could have been our treasures in heaven now wasted on finding riches on earth. Well, it did pretty much change my perspective over certain things now.

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Are you making the world richer or poorer?

S

ome of the world's greatest treasures have been left to us by men who died either penniless or with almost no money. Wolfgang Mozart was one of the world's greatest musicians. The music he wrote nearly two hundred years ago in his native Austria is loved and played everywhere. God gave to him a remarkable power to compose beautiful melodies. Although he died while only thirty-five, he left many, many great works of music. But did he make money? No. He was poorly paid. Also, he was a poor manager in money affairs. When he died in 1791, only the cheapest kind of funeral was held. No friends went to the cemetery to see him buried. Soon the exact location of his grave was forgotten, and today nobody knows really where this great man's body was laid. To make matters worse, he was buried in the pauper's cemetery, that is, in the cemetery set aside by the city for poor people whose families couldn't buy any ground anywhere else. How rich the world is, though, because of Mozart's music!

M

any other great men have died poor after having made our world a better place to live. Surely God does not want us to neglect those we love. Certainly he wants us to provide our families with enough food, clothing, and other necessary things. But we can easily believe, as so many do, that making money and buying things are what God wants us to do most of all. Many people pile up riches and leave the world poorer. They become greedy, selfish, and spoiled. Jesus warned us against the love of money and said it could destroy our souls. Are you making the world richer or poorer? Even if you have no money, you can make it a better place than you found it. "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth . . . but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven."—Matt. 6:19-20.

AGAPE LOVE DIVINE MINISTRIES

a mix of this and that. =)

Love the connection in the morning. It is indeed very fast and I get to connect to the internet in just a few seconds. whee. okay, the title of the post has got ntg to do with what I'm gonna write at all. lol its just another random thing. yeah, again. hehe.



Been feeling really great and seriously good after talking to my bestie last saturday. It's been such a long time we talked over the phone for hours already. So much to catch up, so much to say, so much to know and so much to laugh about. The feeling is nice and I was really pumped up to continue doing whatever I'm doing tht moment. aha. It's like a once-in-a-lifetime thing to be fortunate enuf to have such a frend. You cant be sitting down with someone you just knew a few days ago and spilling all ur thots and feelings to them, can you? It's not easy to trust yet it's not hard to believe them. Ohk crap, I'm babbling like a philosopher again. Don't wan Cheryl to call me tht again.. ehehe.

Felt really good also after my mom called. But nowadays, my mom has been calling more than I called her back. she must be missing me, no? lol once, she called just to tell me not to drive too much during exam period. she's afraid of me not being able to attend exam. She even go to the extend to remind me not to forget to attend my exam. -.-" moms. each time she calls, it'll makes me miss my home even more. just couldn't wait anymore longer to go back home. but it's good tho' I know my family back there still care. talked to my bro as well. Sometimes we are not sure of what we can talk about but as soon as he was over the phone, we actually did have quite a lot to ask and talk. ahah. hmm.. didnt get to talk to sis, she's not around maybe.. but i guess she's busy somewhere in the house.. lol

So many things happened in life, still life moves on. No matter what happened, time wont wait nor does your life. haih. Sometimes, when you did something and you didn't actually meant it, it's really hard to just say forget it or treat it as if nothing occurs. Everything done is done, everything said is said. You knew you shouldnt have done it yet you still do, you knew you mustn't follow yet you still follow. is tht what they call temptation? or pressure? It may seems to be over, But the whole big pile of guilt is still there. You tend to want to hate urself for doing it but what more could you do? Cry over spilt milk? We could only learn from mistakes and never to repeat it and there.. life goes on. =) We can't heal the hurt but the best gift we could give the person is prayer (as what my Shepherd said =D)



Today as I do my devotion, before I actually open up the book, I told God I need something new, something to push me forward even more, something tht will impact me, something tht will get stucked in my head forever. Yes, he did. =) it was just what I needed. ^^ Just some lil sharing here =D

..time to get moving.

Deuteronomy 1: 6-8
"You have stayed at this mountain long enough." (v6)

Monica Seles was riding high in 1993. The 19-year-old was No. 1 in women's tennis, breaking records and opponents -until the day a guy jumped out of the stands and plunged a 9-inch boning knife into her back.

For the next 2 years, Monica rehabbed -physically, emotionally, and mentally. Her biggest battles were against fear, depression and loss. But with the support of family, coaches, and counselors, Monica made her return to the tennis tour. She had been stuck on a mountain of doubt, but found the courage to move forward.

God's people once looked back at a time when they were stuck on a mountain. But He said,
"You have stayed at this mountain long enough. It is time to break camp and move on" (Deuteronomy 1 : 6-7).

Ahead lay many obstacles: the physical effects of wandering in the gritty desert; the emotional ups and downs of God's supernatural provision, and His punishments for their disobedience; doubts about their mental toughness in taking stronger opponents.

Ultimately, they moved forward because God told them to go. He had made a promise -it was theirs to claim. God has made promises to you too, including:
"I will never fail you. I will never abandon you" (Hebrews 13:5)

Monica Seles still carries a scar. No doubt the Israelites carried the scars from their wandering as they made their way into the Promised Land. There were bumps along the way, but they made it. And so will you, because
"The Lord your God is going ahead of you. He will fight for you, just as you saw Him do in Egypt" (Deuteronomy 1:30).

Find your courage in Him. =)

More:
2 Corinthians 1: 21-22
"Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come."

Titus 1:2
"..a faith and knowledge resting on the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time.."

Things to ponder:
Are you stuck on a mountain of fear or circumstances? What has God promised you?


-Tracy Carbaugh (ODJ)

oh yeah, ALL THE BEST in your Finals, ppl! Remember you can do all things through God who strengthens you. =) and not to forget just do your best and God will do the Rest. No worries. =D

Time for some simplicity!!

Sometimes, in life, it is good to just stop and stare for a lil while before getting on. Life couldn't be more complicated, it seems. Our days are always so filled with commuting and activity and studies and conversation tht we can't keep up with it anymore cos there's just too much to handle. There are assignments to be done, calls to make, clothes to wash, rooms to clean, movies to watch, meetings to attend.. etc etc. Then, we'll reach to a point of giving up and thought, "why do we have to do all these things?!"

In the midst of all this frenetic activity, we may feel tht we've lost control of our life. It will seems like our schedule runs us instead of us running on our schedule. We have no time for family and sometimes even friends or some other commitments. In some case, for some ppl they'll even feel guilty to just sit down to read a book or listen to some musics for pure leisure cos they think they're running out of time with so many compiling stuff to do. And then the question is how bout Jesus? No time left for Him at all. (reality check: it do happens)
It is God who has given us all things to enjoy (I Tim. 6:17). But to be extreme and spend little or no time with God is to neglect our responsibilities toward God. But good news is you should know how Jesus is. He always knocks and waits!

"The Lord does not let the righteous go hungry, but he thwarts the craving of the wicked."

Proverbs 10:3

Tht doesn't mean u can take things for granted! You still have to allocate some time for God. Just don't let your schedule control you. Take charge of your life. Then you'll be able to give the Lord the time He deserves, and you'll enjoy your relationship with Him. Just see how God changes the little little things in your life. So, take some time now at least to think how should you simplify your life to establish more seconds and minutes and hours for your spiritual health and growth.

Our mental hygiene.

Colossians 3:1-10
Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth (v2)

In Colossians 3:2, Paul used the verb think in connection with the mind. He told his fellow believers to keep letting thoughts about Jesus rule their minds. Thinking about Jesus should not be haphazard ( irregularity ), but consistent and intentional. We should fasten our minds on who Jesus is, always taking a fresh look at Him and the things He said.

This verse doesn't mean we should never think about earthly things -money, houses, cars, work, school, and family. These things, however, should never be our ultimate aim, our ultimate goal, and our ultimate master. As Jesus-followers, we are called to keep our feet moving in the world while getting our marching orders from heaven. We must be heavenly-minded, so as to make earth more like God created it to be.

The purpose of our journey is that we will be conformed to the image of Jesus. So, let's fill our minds with things that honor Him. Our thoughts are the sum total of our character, so let's try to do a better job with our mental hygiene this week. It will benefit us and those around us.

What good things have been filling your mind today? Why is it so important to continually have Jesus in our thoughts?