Nothing illustrates the “toy” mentality better than the attitude in the 1980's. Back then, Babyboomers with too much bling were called “yuppies.” Here’s their attitude captured in this bed time prayer: Now I lay me down to sleep. I pray my Cuisinart to keep. I pray my stocks are on the rise, and that…

I have sometimes thought of the contrast between the poor man’s funeral and the rich man’s funeral. When the poor man dies, his sons and daughters weep with real distress, for the death of the father brings sadness and sympathy into that house. The poor man is to be buried, but it can only be managed…

"The Paradox of Our Time" The paradox of our time in history is that: We have taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider freeways, but narrower viewpoints. We spend more, but have less. We buy more, but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time. We have…

This is a book by Paul Zane Pilzer. It’s entitled God Wants You to Be Rich. Pilzer tells you in that book how and why God wants you to be rich in every possible way – in health, love and peace of mind, as well as material possessions. He argues that every individual’s success promotes the good of overall…

The happiest people surround themselves with family and friends, don't care about keeping up with the Joneses next door, lose themselves in daily activities and, most important, forgive easily. "Materialism is toxic for happiness," says University of Illinois psychologist Ed Diener. Even rich materialists…

MATERIALISM G.H. Charnley, in The Skylark's Bargain, tells the story of a young skylark who discovered one day a man who would give him worms for a feather. He made a deal-one feather for two worms. The next day the lark was flying high in the sky with his father. The older bird said, "You know, son,…

Greed Greed is the logical result of the belief that there is no life after death. We grab what we can while we can however we can and then hold on to it hard. Sir Fred Catherwood, Evangelicals Now

If you had to manage waterworks for the distribution of water all over this city, and there was a certain pipe into which you poured water, and none ever came out at the other end, do you know what you would do? You would take it out and say, “This does not suit my purpose. I want a pipe that will give…

The growing wave of politically correct speech and thought has many people concerned about the way America is celebrating Christmas. Organizations are listing retailers that don’t use the word Christmas in their advertising , court cases are filed over the inclusion or exclusion of nativity scenes, and…

The Rich Man’s Reward There is an old story about a very wealthy man who died and went to heaven. An angel guided him on a tour of the celestial city. He came to a magnificent home. "Who lives there?" asked the wealthy man. "Oh," the angel answered, "on earth he was your gardener." The rich man got excited.…

Before the end of the movie, “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies,” the Dwarf king, Thorin Oakenshield, has a choice to make. Will he stay in the Lonely Mountain protected by its massive stones gates or will he lead his Dwarven troops into battle and help the Men and Elves overcome the orcs that…

While Miley Cyrus is no longer a role model for young girls, there is one subject on which we ought to pay attention to her. She is only 22 years old but has already made a fortune. She complains that people from contractors to fellow celebrities are continually trying to get her to buy things she neither…

While money can’t buy happiness, if you have enough of it, it can buy a quote about happiness. In 2017, a piece a paper that Einstein wrote his famous quote: “A calm and modest life brings more happiness than the pursuit of success combined with constant restlessness” sold for $1.3 million. Einstein…

Randy Alcorn in his book The Treasure Principle cites the PBS program Affluenza which addresses what it calls the "modern-day plague of materialism." The show stated the following statistics: The average American shops six hours a week while spending forty minutes playing with his children. By age twenty,…

Alexander the Great, when he was master of the whole world, was the greatest slave in it, for he was discontented even with his victories. The pride of conquest held him in captivity by its iron chain. He who aims at the highest greatness in this world may only be more greatly selfish than the rest of…

When a Georgia bank teller accidentally posted a customer’s $31,000 deposit to the wrong account, the teenager who received the money by mistake immediately began a huge spending spree. Records show the names on the account were the same, and the teller apparently did not double check the account numbers…

When a Nevada man died recently, he left $200 in his bank account, but authorities were surprised at what they found in his house later. Police found the 69-year-old man’s body after neighbors called authorities in June. When authorities arrived to begin cleaning out the house, they discovered millions…

In his book, Enemies of the Heart: Breaking Free from the Four Emotions That Control You, Andy Stanley writes, "Greed is conquered with generosity. Generous giving will break the grip of greed on your life. So whether or not you think you have extra, give and give generously. You’ve got to give to the…

We meet occasionally with people like the man who, when he was comparatively poor, gave his guinea, but when he grew rich, he only gave a shilling. His explanation was that when he had a shilling purse, he had a guinea heart; but when he had a guinea purse, he found that he had only a shilling heart.…

Recently, a remake of the Parable of the Good Samaritan occurred in China. After automobile hit a 2-year old child, the driver fled the scene of the accident. Pedestrians ignored the injured child lying with blood in the street. No one stopped to help. No one except Chen Xianmei, a poor woman, who was…

German police say a landlady’s concerns about a chemical odor from a tenant’s apartment led them to a man who was trying unsuccessfully to get gold from old cellphone and computer circuit boards. The woman called police because she had not seen the tenant for some time and was concerned that something…

Billionaire's Ex-Wife Wants More Money LOS ANGELES CAP) - The ex-wife of billionaire Kirk Kerkorian is asking a court for the biggest child support award ever in California, $320,000 a month to care for their 3-year-old daughter. In court documents, Lisa Bonder Kerkorian lists monthly expenses for daughter…

We have known men say, “Well, I suppose I must give something, but these claims come terribly often. My purse is always being drawn upon, but I suppose I cannot get out of it without a subscription.” He gives as if he were parting with his blood. His fingers tremble and linger long over the shilling,…

Two years ago, John Brandick, a 62-year-old British man, was told he would succumb to pancreatic cancer within a year. Thinking he only had that single year to live, he decided to get the most out of what life he had left. He quit his job, quit paying his mortgage, and used his savings to give gifts…

In Brewster’s Million, Richard Prior plays a minor league baseball player who just inherited a whole lot of money from an unknown relative. Brewster is given 30 days to spend 30 million dollars and he can have no assets at the end of the 30 days. If he succeeds then he will receive 300 million dollars…