No Brainer: How To Have Treasures Of Gold

The moments are all too rare lately: having a free evening with homework finished. I knew without asking what my youngest daughter's request would be: can we play a game?

What family advocate can turn down a request like that? While I am not a big fan of board games I know such evenings are all too fleeting. So we sat down to play the game of Life, and stumbled onto--you guessed it--a conversation of pure gold.

In this game you collect "gift" cards which award huge cash prizes at the end of the game, for engaging in good, positive behavior, like recycling; or awarded in celebration of birthdays; or given as presents for having children.

As we were talking about rewards, my daughter noted, "You know in the Bible where Jesus was talking to the young man about selling everything he had to give the money to the poor, and then you will have riches in heaven? And then the guy goes away because he doesn't want to do it. What can he be thinking?" and she does one of the mannerisms popularized by "Clueless" indicating "duh," or "that's a no brainer." "I mean," she continued, "Where is he going to live longer anyway; here or in heaven?"

Inside I cheered that she knew enough "Bible" to have this story down pretty well; while we go to church and have tried to teach our children the stories of the Bible, I many times feel we have failed pretty miserably on that score. Second I was happy to know that she felt the question was a no brainer: who would choose treasures on earth over treasures forever? Indeed. Most of us, even if we believe in an afterlife, live our lives worrying mostly about the here and now. How can we get ahead, how can we provide for our families, how can we afford the next car or the next TV? Being so occupied, we forget that we need to be more concerned about giving to others rather than hoarding up for ourselves. Not that "treasures later" ever becomes the motive for giving. But when we adopt a lifestyle of giving to others, that is the way to truly transform our outlook. And frankly I haven't gotten there yet.

Treasures in heaven. Whether it is spending time with your children, giving away more of your wealth, or taking time to help someone else: these are ways to live a happier life right now. As with many other things, it's a paradox. We've come full circle.

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Contributed by Melodie Davis: MelodieD@MennoMedia.org Melodie is the author of eight books and writes a syndicated newspaper column, Another Way