On Being One

Stylish Fashion, and yet Eco-Friendly

2010-11-26T15:09:00.013+08:00

What matters to you most, fashion and design or nature-friendly products? Most of the time, in order to help save the nature, artistry and intricate details of a garment are put aside. However, should consumers be face without any options as to how they wanted to be dressed?

Other times, garment companies will try, as much as they can, to use organic products to contribute to the saving of the world. The artistry and intricate details are not compromised, but their products are way too expensive. Wouldn't it be nice if a company can come up with organically produced products and yet with artistry and intricate details at a reasonable price?

Hmm..what then is a reasonable price?!

Oxford Dictionary describes reasonable as "as much as is appropriate or fair. And for me, I believe, that companies can come up with concepts that are fairly appropriate both in the areas of artistry & design and in marking its prices. And I have found such a company...Have you heard of GeboMana?

Well, if truth be said, I wouldn't have heard of this company had the owner not sought me at oDesk. It was through this that I get to "look in" on the company's website and 'lo and behold! what I found was indeed a treasure.

GeboMana is a company that specializes in hand-crafted T-shirts. The concept was to bring Bali Indonesia's great culture into artistic exposure through the shirts. The artists themselves are international award winning designers. And guess where the shirts are made...in Bali of course! Before I get ahead of myself, let me introduce the company and key people within.

The 3 key players in this company are Scott Foster, Mike Boorn, and Ruby Reyes. None of them are artist by profession, but all of them play a distinct role in leading the company to where it is today. Scott and Ruby deals with international relations with Ruby creating an international supply chain and overseeing the production in Bali, while Scott handles the international operation and cultural difficulties with an international market. And Mike handles the marketing and advertising.

These 3 people came together and started a unique outlet due to an overwhelming desire to change the world. "Have they?", you might ask.

Well, you see, unless you've visited the site or have purchased, or been given, a shirt from GeboMana, you'll never understand why they exist.

GeboMana, as I have gathered from their website, exists not just for profit, but for service and something else. I said service..hmmm...what do I mean by that? Remember my earlier "wishful thinking" about a company that can come up with organically produced products and yet with artistry and intricate details at a reasonable price? Well, GeboMana uses 100% organic cotton, which means eco-friendly; GeboMana never compromises with design, all of their shirt are of Limited Editions; and they are not pricey, if you know what I mean. A shirt costs $49. "Whoa!" you might say. Indeed, for 3rd world countries that's too much, but wait 'till you see what you get. Each T-shirt is gift-wrapped and boxed (with GeboMana's unique wrappers), and is shipped express courier worldwide, and you can have it personalized by having your message printed on a high grade paper and placed in a hand-embossed luxury envelope. Wouldn't it be a romantic gift to a sweetheart?!

"What about that 'something else'?" Remember the "overwhelming desire to change the world"? Well, GeboMana has established a foundation called Gebo Foundation. This foundation has helped other non-profit foundations in their endeavor to "change the world". Whenever you buy a shirt from GeboMana, you start educating another child from a developing nation in sustainable practices.

GeboMana might seem like another company with a foundation and a desire to help poor nations. But for me, putting such a desire together with such a great product is a company worth my vote. Will I be purchasing a shirt from this company? Well, not at the moment maybe, but I'm greatly considering about it. And once I did, I will surely post it here and let you guys see!

These are the designs that caught my attention and if they'll still be available when I have the money to purchase them, I would surely buy these:

The New Jarvis

2010-10-15T16:50:00.003+08:00

This guy is amazing! Upon arriving here at Gen San, he had adjusted quite well! There was no mention of Manila nor Zamboanga (which was very different from the time we've left Zambo!) There was no wish of "Mommy, I wish we can go back to Manila (or Zamboanga)" or "Mommy, I want to leave". Instead, there was just pure peace in him.

Even when we first went to his school! Yes, there was this hesitation in meeting his Principal, Teachers and classmates. But on the 1st day at his school, he found friends! He played, sing and run around with these friends that he has found. And his friends are really concern about him too!

One morning, after dropping him off at his school, two of his friends approached me and said that Jarvis is slow in copying what the teacher had asked them to copy. They were concerned that if Jarvis were to graduate from Kinder 2 and start Grade 1, he might not be able to catch up! Amazing isn't it! Well, of course being a Mom, I carried the concern over to his teacher, and his teacher assured me that he can and will catch up.

Going to school (and adjusting very quickly) was the first encounter Jarvis had when we arrived here. The second, as I believe most of you have noticed, was his clean-shaven head. He had not have that kind of cut for almost 3 years already. He has been begging me to have his hair shaved for the past 2years to which I adamantly said 'No'. But on his first hair cut here, I've decided to give him what he has been asking for...and voila!

He didn't like it, that's for sure! When we entered the Barber's Shop, he was filled with confidence with his decision. But the moment the barber shaved a portion of his head, his face changed! And I can see regret in his eyes, but I told him that no matter what other people has to say about his hair cut, he has to still has to accept of what he has decided upon. This was a hard lesson for him..but a lesson that he needs to learn.

The third encounter is his need to wear glasses. He's only 5 years old, but he already have astigmatism and grade. This came about 2 weeks ago, when I noticed that he kept on blinking his eyes, particularly the one on the right. Joshua noticed that he had a hard time reading and often commits mistake with the letters. And last Tuesday, Oct 12, we've decided to have his eyes checked. The Doctor said that if Jarvis can still go on without much complain, then the glasses are not needed. But that night, his eyes kept on blinking and therefore, Josh and I have decided that it's time to have his glasses made. This third adjustment was not a problem either. I was expecting him to complain of dizziness or unwillingness to wear the glasses, but amazingly he wore it with much anticipation! He has stopped blinking, so I assume that the glasses are helping.

Jarvis is truly an amazing guy! I'm praying that he will grow up in this hard and brutal world with love and understanding for all, especially us, his parents. I don't know why, but God has blessed us with a truly great son. I just hope that, as his parents, we will be able to fulfil and give him the love, training and discipline he needs in order to live righteously in this unrighteous world.

On Receving God's Graciousness and Generosity

2010-10-01T21:47:00.001+08:00

Motherhood posts a great challenge to every single woman in this world. From the time of Eve up until now, women were never spared from the difficulties and pains of pregnancy down to giving birth. This is one of the major punishment of God for Eve when she disobeyed.

Most people say that children are gifts from God. And yet, most people take these gifts for granted. For people who practices pre-marital sex and got pregnant, they will simply go through abortion in order to "take-away" the shame of being pregnant outside of marriage. While others try to get these blessings through artificial insemination.

In my case, however, the Lord has been extra generous and gracious. Gracious because He allowed me to be pregnant (in both cases) at the right moment. Generous because He has not withheld the joy of having a son and a daughter.

One of the things that most couple aspire to have when they get married is to have children. But sadly, in most cases, those who are not capable of becoming parents received more while those who are able receives either less or none at all. Which one am I? I don't know...but...

The graciousness of the Lord has been bestowed upon me and my family. On the 1st month of our marriage, I found out that I was pregnant with our son. I was not able to work due to my delicate pregnancy and was even hospitalized. But God was gracious in meeting all of our needs. After giving birth, I was not able to go back to work, because it was too difficult to look for a nanny... and yet, God was gracious to meet all of our needs.

A few months before my son's 1st birthday, the Lord has called us to leave our place of ministry and to transfer to a provincial church...again, the graciousness of God. When His ministers are no longer bearing fruit in a certain place, He shall call him out and put him in another place where he will bear fruit. And that's what has happened to us. We were no longer bearing fruit in that place, so God has called us out and put us in another location.

We served in this place for 4years until the Lord asked us to move again. And throughout these 4 years we've witnessed and experienced God's grace and generous giving through the people we're serving. And the biggest gift came when I became pregnant for our 2nd child. Everything was in God's timing. Everything was in God's control.

When I realized I was pregnant, my son was only 2years and 7months old. He witnessed the growth of my tummy and felt the movements of the baby. Although we've been praying for a girl, we're also praying that God gives us what He knows is best for the family. And God has answered our prayers...we have a daughter.

The usual problem with a new baby is rivalry between siblings. And that's what I've been afraid of ever since i knew I was pregnant. At first, my son had a hard time coping with his sister's incessant demand for my attention. But slowly, as he gets to share in the responsibility of taking care of his sister did he finally realized the difficulty I was in. He started having more patience and tolerance. And he also has become more protective of his sister. But of course, the jealousy is still there. And I think in order for him to get some attention for himself, he has started copying his sister's actions.

It was a trying 2 years before I was able to get some sense into my son's head. He's almost 6year old now and he's getting better to being an older brother. In his actions and words, it's evident that he loves his sister dearly. We're truly blessed by God! And we'r continually experiencing His goodness and grace as we go through the rough roads of this life.

May you experience Him as we have and still having! To God be the glory forever and ever...AMEN!

Outsourcing with oDesk.com

2010-09-15T11:45:00.006+08:00

Outsourcing with oDesk.com

With the current trends, outsourcing has become the cheapest and most convenient in the business world. Before, outsourcing has to do with manufacturing and other factory related tasks. But now, even office works are being outsourced. With the fast development in technologies, there is actually a software that will allow the "employee" to access the desktop of the "employer"!!! How amazing can technologies be!

Hiring an employee is no longer limited to same city, state or country. One can actually hire thousands of miles away and still get the same, or better, results. And this is what oDesk is all about...outsourcing.

Upon entering the world of oDesk, you'll witness a variety of people inside. There are those whose employers pay great compliments to and there are those who gave their employers headaches. But these things are not only limited to employees. The same can also be said to the employers. There are those who would "exploit" the contractors at oDesk, offering them very low salaries for very big and hard jobs. But there are those employers who are generous and understands the difficulty of working online. Rare are these people...those who work with dignity & dedication, and those who hire with compassion.

However, these people can be found at oDesk, but one has to search with great patience. Outsourcing is very risky for you'll never know if the one you're working for will pay you as what was stated in the contract or if the one you've hired will work in accordance to what your contract had stipulated. Either way, trust must be built. There's no way for either one to see and monitor the other's actions and thoughts, for there's lesser opportunities to make contact outside work. Rarely will one ask about the other's family life for whatever e-mail or conversation transpires online, it will be all about work. Then how can trust be built, you might ask...well, for the employee, you'll have to check the feedback score given by previous employees, or you'll just have to work for a week or two before you'll know if you're actually getting paid. For the employer, you'll have to hire based on the feedback scores given by previous employers or you can hire and see the progress (or lack of progress)of the employee before hiring for long term (or terminating the contract). As I've mentioned earlier, outsourcing is very risky, however, it can be rewarding for both parties, you'll just have to be patient in looking for the right candidate.

Therefore, if you're willing to give it a try, go ahead. But just be warned, its never easy to find the right fit. You'll need your God-given wisdom in deciding where to apply and most especially who to hire.

Working for oDesk

2010-07-21T08:42:00.002+08:00

Working online is not as easy as it sounds. There are a lot of "working online" websites but most of it are only applicable in the United States, or somewhere else, but rarely applies the Philippines. Yes, there were reports that a Filipina had earned hundreds of thousands of pesos by giving her comments online. Rarely will you find a website that offers work for free. If ever there'll be such a website, one can't help but wonder.."is this a scam?" Well, let me tell you my experience with online work...

5 years ago, I've thought of searching for work, online. Since I get to be online almost 24/7, I wanted Internet time to a more profitable and effective. So I've started looking for work online. There were websites that are "catchy" in nature...they will offer you great money with a simple click of a mouse or simply giving your opinion. With these kinds of offers, who will not be tricked into signing up?! And yes, I was tricked into giving them at least $25 for their sign up fee...what did I get? Websites upon websites upon websites....Did I get any offers? Oh yes! But once I clicked on the link to get started, an error will appear saying that the product or company is not being offered in my country! It was so frustrating!!!

I almost gave up, but the Lord has been good, I've found a breakthrough! As I was searching for online work, which I have been doing for the past 5 years, I've finally landed on a gold mine! While clicking on links upon links, I tumbled upon oDesk.com. At first I was apprehensive to join 'coz it might be one of those crazy websites. But as I read thru the website's page, I found out that it's not offering quick money or anything like that. Instead, it's offering real job from real companies for real freelancers...and it's free! So, I've decided to give it a try.

I've filled up their resume, gave a proper calculation of my salary and started applying for work. It's much like applying for a real job in the real world, just minus the hassle of traffic, pollution and weather conditions. I was a member of oDesk since March of 2010, but I only get to work 2 months later. It's not easy to land a job, as it is not easy in the real world. The competition among the contractors are great, but its not impossible to land a job.

The uniqueness of oDesk is in this area: joining the website is free, both for the contractors (freelancers) and the employers; if the employer will hire a contractor, the employer will shoulder the 10% service charge, while the contractors will NOT pay for anything while working under oDesk; the only time a contractor will pay for anything is when he/she will withdraw his/her salary from oDesk, and this is at a very very very low price of $1/withdrawal. So lets say you've earned $251 by working at oDesk and you wanted to withdraw the money, $1 will be deducted from your salary and you get the remaining $250. The same is true to any amount you would like to withdraw. Therefore, it is wise to gather as much money as you can before making a withdrawal.

How to transfer the money from oDesk to your bank account will need another blog for it. What I wanna focus on right now is working online under oDesk.

oDesk guarantees that an hour billed is an hour worked and that an hour worked is an hour paid. That is why there are no "lazy" moments while working at oDesk, which is very unlikely to happen in an office environment. Some people are known to take advantage of their employers absence. Do you know the popular phrase for this? "When the cat is away...the mouse will play" (which, sad to say, is most visible and rampant in the Philippines government employees!) But this is not so with oDesk. oDesk has a software that allows it to take snapshots of what you're doing on your desktop. if you were doing something outside of your work (even for just a few seconds), and oDesk Team took that snapshot, you'll be forced to delete that snapshot, and so does all of your work for that full 10 minutes or so. That's the guarantee of oDesk: that an hour billed is an hour worked and that an hour worked is an hour paid.

There are a lot of work available at oDesk, but most has to do with web pages. Most popular are the web designers and blog/article writers. As I've mentioned earlier, great is the competition among freelancers in landing a good job. And I guess this is the sad part in working for oDesk...for a mom like me, I have to compete with freelancers who have all the time in the world to work. Therefore, those more "abled" freelancers gets to land the "good" jobs while I get the "crumbs".

But in totality, working for oDesk is much more realistic rather than running after the quick and easy way of earning money online. As the older folks used to say "its more satisfying to spend a hard-earned money".

I hope this blog has helped you in any way possible.

For employers who might have read this blog:

For freelancers who wanted to join this wonderful team:

On Being a Home-School Mom

2009-08-19T11:49:00.002+08:00

Home-schooling is now becoming a trend in education. A lot of schools, especially in the Philippines, are now offering home-schooling curriculum. Home-schooling was never heard of until the year 2000. And it was not accepted until 5-6years later. Home-schooling is unknown in the unbelieving world, but this is a basic Biblical teaching. It is unheard or unpracticed in the unbelieving world because most, if not all, parents would prefer to throw their children in schools because they need to work to provide the children with good education. But this is not true with the Biblical teaching. Deuteronomy 11:19 says "Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up." Although this specific passage talks about the miracles that God had done and has to do with the teachings of the law, the same is still true when it comes to educating our children. In the Old Testament time, one may argue, there was no institution called school, but that's the purpose why school was made, so that parents can focus on working. But I say, that is wrong. Statistically speaking, children fare well in this world when both parents are there to teach, guide and live by example. Some children fare well too with only one parent present. However, the same can't be said to a child or children who were left in the care of an institution. Home-schooling is the most ideal, but also most taxing of all.

Home-schooling Moms need to have patience, abilities and discipline. Most of the time, we'll hear parents scold their children of not being focus on their studies or assignments. But in home-schooling, it's the Mom (or the supervisor) who needs to be disciplined. The "Supervisor" must be consistent with study time and goals accomplished. The "Supervisor" must prepare all of the things, esp when it comes to craft time. If the "Supervisor" failed to do these things, then home-schooling will not be effective.

However, there are perks as well in doing home-schooling. The child is trained to be independent in doing his homework. The child gets more attention than in a traditional school set up. And the "Supervisor" can figure out the child's weakness in each subject and be able to help the child cope up.

As with anything in this world, there'll always be pros and cons in a given situation. One must weigh the pros and cons of home-schooling before actually "leaping" into it.

I've done home-schooling with my son for 3levels in a span of 2years. I can say that home-schooling is still the best for I can focus on my son's weaknesses. However, my son has acquired my weaknesses as well. I'm pretty poor with crafts, and so I have the tendency to pay more attention with his actual subjects than honing his skills in the arts' section.

Again, there are pros and cons in doing this thing...but it's truly worth a try. It can strengthen one's bond with your child/ren or it can cause more problem. With my case, it has allowed me to get to know my son better in the area of his studies. And I was able to relay to him my goals for him. I can say it has helped us in improving our relationship with one another. And on top of this, I am able to follow-up the principles I'm teaching him here at home with this studies. Home-schooling, for me, is and will always be the best!

Why Is It So Hard?

2009-07-08T19:59:00.000+08:00

Why is it so hard to be a pastor? Well, first and foremost, I have been a pastor for only 6years. And just recently, I have decided to resign from that post to concentrate on my new mission field, which is raising my children God's way.

But for these 6 years, I've seen that the difficulty of being a servant of God in our time did not differ much from those in the Bible time. When Israel had finally settled in the land of Canaan, they were surrounded by idolatry and was enticed to worship their gods. When Isaiah was called to preach the Word of God, the people he was to preached to were hardhearted people and their hearts were not towards God. At the end of Paul's life, he was still fighting against heresy in the church and had to face false teachers inside. Sounds like our time, right?

The Church Age is not different from the days of the Old and New Testament. If I may say so, I believe the Bible IS and ALWAYS will be the manual for God's servants...for in It, we find that we're not alone in fighting this tragic battle and how we must fight it.

As far as I can see, there are actually 4 areas in this battle. The 1st one will be the religious group that are growing faster as each day passes by. They are not only growing in worshipers but the cultic groups are popping out faster than popcorn themselves! And yet, these groups are not new. They may change their names but their teachings were the ones that Paul and the church fathers had been fighting against during their time.

The 2nd one will be the pastors who are no longer afraid of God but instead they choose to fear men. Pastors nowadays are afraid to lose their jobs, because once that happens, the business world can and will not welcome them back because they know nothing about that world. Therefore, out of fear of not having anything to eat, they no longer preach what they're suppose to preach! They water-down their messages so that the church-goers will not be offended. Sin is no longer confronted and instead it is being flaunted for all to see. These pastors are afraid to correct them especially if they are the biggest giver. They no longer preach nor teach, instead, they give stories for their listeners to be entertained with. They make a clown of themselves just so that their listeners will not boot them out of the church. Some of them would even twist the passages of the Bible just to suit whatever they wanted to say. The holiness of the Bible is no longer put into perspective, nor the holiness of their Master put in mind.

The 3rd one will be the listeners. If you notice I don't call them Christians because unless they see errors in what their preachers are doing, then they are not truly born of Christ. The listeners allow their preachers to preach whatever they can as long as they will not be offended by it and their sins are not brought into scrutiny. They choose whom they wanted to listen to and they don't care if it's for the sake of their spiritual growth or not. The listeners had just simply decided to listen rather to think and grow.

The 4th one will be "rare few" (as some of them call themselves). It is rare indeed to have pastors preach doctrines and correct sin. It is rare indeed to have people who dares to collide with trend and what people want. It is rare indeed to have people who upholds the truth of the Bible and always preach the holiness of their Master. And I see this as the 4th front of the battle because as rare as these people are, the first 3 fronts are trying to crush these rare few. Just like how Martin Luther was crushed during his time, so are the pastors who are serving their God, rather than their stomach, are being crushed.

Yes, it's hard to preach to hardhearted people. It's easier to see money than points earned in heaven. It's easier to feel hunger pangs rather than hear the angels rejoicing. It's easier to feel fear of the unknown than see our Father's smile. Therefore, to the rare few out there who can read this message...Don't lose heart! Our Father in Heaven knows our dilemma. He has been caring for people with the same burden from the beginning of time and He's still taking care of these same people (though of different race, gender and intensity of difficulty) in our time. As we have read in the Bible, we're not experiencing something new. Let us praise our God for giving the Bible to us to remind us that wherever we are, there will always be 4-fronts in a battle. The question will be, which front will you be. Hope you will ally with us so that we will no longer be the rare-few!

On Being a Christian

2008-05-09T14:45:00.000+08:00

The difficulty of being a Christian does not lie with the demands to meet, or commands to be followed. But because we cannot, or shall i say, will not, fully surrender our all to God. Being humans, we know we need other people. And in our way of understanding life and people, we categorized them. We have people in our lives who serves as our Best and Well-trusted friends (people whom we can confide with, tell our deepest secrets and desires), Loyal friends (people whom we can turn to when we're in need or share laughters with, but not with pains and problems), Acquaintances (people we've just met, and are not comfortable to show who we really are), Family and Relatives (people who knows us to well and can predict our actions and words...people whom sometime we feel we can't trust). And how we categorize people, is the same way how we categorize our God. When it comes to spiritual matters, we turn to Him. When it comes to difficult problems to solve, we turn to Him. But when it comes to love, we do it on our own. When it comes to excelling in school or work, we do it on our own. When schedules started getting more hectic as each day passes by, its not the TV that goes out of the window, it's not texting,nor friendster, nor shopping...but God. When a relationship goes from bad to worse, we don't blame ourselves for disobeying God, but we blame Him for causing us to have such pain, then we would start to question if God has indeed loved us.

Deuteronomy 6:5 says "Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength." This passage is not a request or a suggestion, but a command. In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus was asked by a Pharisee as to "which is the greatest commandment in the law". and Jesus quoted this passage in the book of Deuteronomy.

In this passage, there is no such thing as compartmentalizing things. It says that we are to love the Lord our God with all our heart. The heart here does not refer to the organ which pumps blood. Instead it refers to our emotions...when we're happily doing something, we are to love God. when we're down coz of problem or heartache, we are to love God. when we're filled with unending happiness, we are to love God. when we're falling in love with someone, we are to love God. when our business is growing and it seems that blessings are never-ending, we are to love God. In all of our emotional surges and downfall, we are to love God, for He is involve in every aspect of our lives.

Secondly, it says that we are to love the Lord our God with all our soul. This has to do with who we are. Do you enjoy fishing? Love God whenever you're in the lake. Do you enjoy surfing the net? Love God. Do you love to eat? What is your personality? Are you ill-tempered? Remember the loving God. Do you always fall into sin? Remember that our God is just. Do foul words often comes out of your mouth? Remember that God can hear you. Whoever we are, however we look at things in life, we are to love God, for He is involve in every aspect of our lives.

Thirdly, it says that we are to love the Lord our God with all our strength. When you love someone, it is but natural for us to give them our best. We study hard to show our parents our love for them. We work hard for our children to get the best education the world can ever give, to show our love for them. For those who knows how to cook, we'll cook the best, most aromatic, most delightful food we can come up with to show our love. In the same manner, we are to show our love to God with what we do. Whenever exams come, do we study hard so that we'll never cheat? In choosing the girl/boy of your dream, do you pray so that you'll never settle for less of what God commands? When you sing in a choir, do you give your best so that when people compliments us we can give all glory and honor to God who gave you that voice? When you read the Word of God, do you read it in passing or do you devote your whole attention and time in reading and understanding It? When you pray, do you fall asleep while praying? No matter how difficult or easy doing our best for the Lord is, we are to do it for our love for God, for He is involve in every aspect of our lives.

Our God is not a god who leaves His creatures behind and never cares for what they do with themselves. Instead, the God of Abraham, Jacob and Isaac, is the God who loves, disciplines, blesses, justifies and more.

When we're able to stop compartmentalizing our lives for God, then loving Him will start bringing relief instead of fear. When we start loving God with all our heart, soul and strength, then obeying Him will no longer be a struggle, but will be welcomed and embraced.

Shorter Catechism Question # 1 "What is the chief end of man?"
Shorter Catechism Answer # 1 "Man's chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever."

Love God. Enjoy His company. Read His Word and meditate upon it. Talk to Him thru prayer and allow Him to talk to you thru His Word.

Life on Earth, Fleeting, Yet Uncertain

2008-05-09T14:28:00.000+08:00

We know our lives here on Earth are short...but can we say it's sweet? We were born without our consent...but we were born anyway. We grew up knowing that we need education to work, we need to work to earn, we need to earn so that we can learn..and the cycle goes on and on and on. But why? Why are we here on Earth in the first place? If we work so that we can live, and live so that we can work...what kind of life will we be living?

Working and living are part of the task that we have to fulfill. However, if these two takes control of our motive in living, then we'll never fully understand the purpose of being created.

Matt 6:19 says: "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal."

Is it wrong to have the latest gadgets? Is it wrong to dream of a big house with a pool? Is it wrong put my children thru college? Is it wrong to have lots of money so that i can help my parents?

The answer if no...but....having the latest gadgets?..when will u have the latest? After buying that, it's old news for the companies who made them 'coz they've just finished building THE 'latest'! Having a big house with a pool..not bad...and yet will u feel safe living in it? Calamities and tragedies will happen...the bigger your house is, the bigger the insurance...the bigger the insurance, the harder you'll have to work...will you be able to enjoy it when you spend most of your time in your office?

Having money is needed in our time..esp with inflation and economical disturbances and all. However, pouring your life, time, and energy into it will not be beneficial.

While you're alive you get security in knowing that you'll have money to buy groceries and stuffs, but what about when you die? Will you be able to buy your entrance to heaven?

That's why Jesus says "20But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."
and He continues: 24"No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money."

We can only be slaves of one, we can never be slaves of both. If you love money, then you will surely despise God. But if you love God, then with or without money, you'll be content. If you love money, you'll think of all the things that you can have. If you love God, you'll look at the things you have and be grateful. Money is our legal tender...without it, we won't survive. I'm not suggesting that you leave your work and just die. But its more on if you're investing on your future, you have to start investing for your next life also. We don't know when we'll leave this earth, but the surest thing is, all of us will.

When the time comes will Jesus say "throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."(Matt 22) or will He say "Well done, good and faithful servant! Come and share your master's happiness!" (Matt 25)

Take care, y'all! If you have any comments or questions, feel free to post it