Saturday, January 31, 2009

Explaining Title's Contenders behaviour by Game Theory

Legend :
C = Chelsea, L = Liverpool, MU = ManU
W = Win, L = Lose, D = Draw
Note : I am sorry for the confusion of notation (L for Liverpool and L for Lose)


This Sunday night, there will be another big match of EPL (English Premier League) between Chelsea and Liverpool. Both of them are behind Manchester United by 3 points (with the same number of games). Manchester United has a match against Everton on Sunday morning (HK Time).

Just for your information, the current standing of the league (as of Jan 31, 2009) :
1st : Manchester United (50 points)
2nd : Chelsea (48 points)
3rd : Liverpool (48 points)

In this note, I will try to explain why both Chelsea and Liverpool will try to defeat one another by using game theory approach.

As you see in the figure above,
1. If ManU win the Everton match, ManU will have 53 points. Then If Chelsea win, Chelsea will be 2 points behind (-2) and Liverpool will be 5 points behind (-5). Or If Liverpool win, the position is reversed. Or If they share a point, both will be 4 points behind (-4).
2. If ManU lose the Everton match, ManU will have 50 points.Then If Chelsea win, Chelsea will be 1 point in front (+1), and Liverpoll will be 2 points behind (-2). Or If Liverpool win, the position is reversed.Or If they share a point, both will be 1 points behind (-1).
3. If ManU vs Everton ends up with a draw, ManU will have 51 points. Then If Chelsea win, Chelsea will have same points (0) and Liverpool will be 3 points behind (-3). Or If Liverpool win, the position is reversed. Or if they share a point, both will be 2 points behind (-2).

As you see in the figure above, the best strategy for Chelsea or Liverpool is always to win the game (minimizes the point loss).

If there is no collusion activities between them, each of them will play at their best to win the game.

Collusion activity is possible to be conducted between them, because if Liverpool let Chelsea win, Chelsea has a better position to challenge ManU for the title, and vice versa (if Chelsea let Liverpool win). Both of them has same amount of points currently. In this sense, both of them joins forces to steal the title from ManU (assumed their objective is any club could win the title except ManU). I mention this only for the sake of possibility. Although, I believe that this will not happen.

Game Theory Approach of explaining behavior of Liverpool and Chelsea this coming Sunday night.

Friday, January 30, 2009

What you sow is what you are going to reap

Have you ever seen a farmer in the field sowing seeds? He sows the seed with the hope of reaping something in the future. A farmer who sows a seed of corn will reap a stalk of corn. A farmer who sows a seed of rice will harvest rice. This story is analogous to our life to some extent.

An athlete who trains very diligently has a higher chance of being an Olympic champion.
A student who studied well has a higher chance of getting a good grade.
A worker who works hard (and/ smart) has a higher chance of getting higher income.
Parents who teach truths of life to their children will have a higher chance to see their children successful in life.
And so on...

The rule is also applied to the other side of the story.
An athlete who does not train himself diligently has a lower chance of being an Olympic champion.
A student who did not studied well has a lower chance of getting a good grade.
A worker who does not work hard (and/ smart) has a lower chance of getting higher income.
Parents who does not teach truths of life to their children will have a lower chance to see their children successful in life.
And so on...

Probably it is oversimplified. Most of the time, there are many other factors that affect the outcomes. But this oversimplified truth seems to hold in our life to some extent.

You will reap what you have sown. Knowing this simple truth :
From today, start sowing what you want to reap tomorrow.

God bless you.

Thursday, January 29, 2009

It happens as I predicted

Dear EPL (English Premier League) Fans,

I have mentioned a couple of weeks ago that Liverpool will start going down in the league ranking soon.

The time when I mentioned this, Liverpool was in the top of the table. But 2 days ago, Man U secures the top spot, while Liverpool went down to 2nd place. And this morning, Chelsea leapfrogged Liverpool to claim the 2nd place. I personally has pretty strong confidence that Liverpool will not do much for the rest of the season. Liverpool is famous for its inconsistency. History told you so. Liverpool could only win the league only if there are only 19 matches in a season ( or half-season in current situation). Liverpool was always only good either in the first half of the season or in the second half of the season, they could not maintain the performance for the whole season. The problem is that it is a full season.

I try to make a statement as objective as possible, and I still put my confidence in Manchester United. They are the only team in EPL which has the highest chance of winning the league. How about Chelsea? Well, they will only becoming a good contender alongside with Liverpool, but they will never lift up the trophy by the end of the season.

Glory - Glory - Man United....

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Profit Maximizing Behaviour

Happy Chinese New Year. Welcome the year of the Ox. A Feng-Shui Master said that the Ox this year represents a endurance amid the financial turmoil, as the hard working Ox which never complains being asked to drag the soil cultivator machine. Hope the financial crisis ends soon. Some economists said that we might see the turning point of the crisis by mid-2009.

Anyway, that is not what I want to talk about. Here in Hong Kong, Chinese New Year is a public holiday and it is a 3-day off starting from yesterday. During the Chinese New Year, many economics units (shops, restaurants, firms) are usually not producing services.

I would to talk about restaurants in HK during this festive seasons. As many of the restaurants are closed, supply of eating placed falls (while demand remains relatively constant in some areas). The fall of supply is seen by the restaurant's owners as an opportunity to raise profit (converting consumer surplus into its of producer, in economic terms). Just now, I had my dinner in the restaurant I used to go. For these 3 days, they will charge customers of 10% VAT (they never do it on non-festive seasons). It was funny. I do not think that the tax will be paid to the government though. Hahaha. What an opportunist.

Profit Maximizing Behaviour. In Economics, Economics Unit are assumed as profit maximizing unit as well as minimizing cost.

Economics is just around you.

Prayer Circles

Prayer Circles

Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled. —Luke 18:14

Around the circle the 6th-grade girls went, taking turns praying for each other in the Bible-study group. “Father in heaven,” Anna prayed, “please help Tonya not to be so boy-crazy.” Tonya added with a giggle, “And help Anna to stop acting so horrible in school and bothering other kids.” Then Talia prayed, “Lord, help Tonya to listen to her mother instead of always talking back.”

Although the requests were real, the girls seemed to enjoy teasing their friends by pointing out their flaws in front of the others instead of caring about their need for God’s help. Their group leader reminded them about the seriousness of talking to almighty God and the importance of evaluating their own hearts.

If we use prayer to point out the faults of others while ignoring our own, we’re like the Pharisee in Jesus’ parable. He prayed, “God, I thank You that I am not like other men—extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector” (Luke 18:11). Instead, we’re to be like the man who asked God to be merciful to him, “a sinner” (v.13).

Let’s be careful not to let our prayers become a listing of others’ flaws. The kind of prayer God desires flows out of a humble evaluation of our own sinful hearts. —Anne Cetas

Lord, teach us how to pray aright,
Oh, lead us in Your way;
Humbly we bow in Your pure light;
Lord, teach us how to pray. —Anon.

The highest form of prayer comes from the depths of a humble heart.




To read today's Our Daily Bread online visit our website.
Copyright 2009, RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI 49555 USA. Written permission must be obtained from RBC Ministries for any further posting or distribution. RBC Ministries produces a variety of Bible resources, which are available for the asking. RBC Ministries is not funded by any group or denomination, and support comes voluntarily from its members and friends. Write rbc@rbc.org for more information.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Joke of Backward-bending Labor Supply Curve

The joke is taken from The Standard (Thur, Jan 22, 2009).

[Start]
Title : Eight stages in my circle of life and we're all players

William Shakespeare said a person goes through 'seven ages of life'. The immortal bard was close, but I'll go one better with my eight stages of modern life.

Stage one : The Intern
Arrives late. Explains that he got lost. Told to make coffee. Makes undrinkable black gunge. Sits in on meetings at which he realizes - with horror - that he knows nothing about anything being discussed. Spends most of the day feeling useless. Asks inane questions such as, 'Please, sir, do we have to ask before we go to the toilet?'. At midday, eats packed lunch from home.

Stage two : The Short-Contract Worker
Arrives early. Waits outside until a staff member arrives with a key. Devotes all his energy to volunteering for assignments because he is desperate to get hired full-time.
At lunch, he eats sandwiches at his desk while doing everyone else's work. He leaves the office last, at 9 pm, but still arrives the next morning before the rest of us.

Stage three : The New Hire
Arrives slightly before other staff. First to take his seat at meetings. Talks constantly about 'our vision'. Starry eyed and enthuasiastic. Does much of the work that gets done, although he is constantly interrupted by older staff wandering into his room to sit on his desk and spout rubbish. Leaves at 8 pm.

Stage four : The Experienced Executive
Arrives at exactly 9 am, not a minute early or late. Has a lot of work to do, but spends most of his time transferring it to other people. Occasionally buys lunch at the wine bar for people at stages one, two and three, because he enjoys the way they worship him. Leaves at 7 pm.

Stage five : The Senior Manager
Strolls into the office at 9.40 am. Cannot avoid work completely, but does the bare minimum. Lunches at private club, practising his 'vice president' look of worldliness and ennui, so as to be ready for the next stage. Sneaks out of the office on the dot of 6 pm.

Stage six : Vice President
Languidly ambles into the office around 11 am. Finds work a total bore, so he gets people at stages one, two, three and four to do all of his work for him. Spends most of the day sitting on the desks of the new hires to give them the benefits of his wisdom. Leaves the office at 5 pm, pretending to be on the way to a client meeting.

Stage seven : Chief Executive Officer
Comes into the office at noon, and then goes straight out again for a long lunch at his club, which takes him until 3 pm. No longer even pretends to do any work. Leaves at 4 pm for a quick round of golf.

Stage eight : Chairman
Arrives late. Explains that he got lost because his memory is not what it was. Serves coffee from private percolator. Turns out to be undrinkable black gunge. Sits in on meetings at which he realizes - with horror - that he no longer knows anything about what is being discussed. Spends most of the day feeling terrifyingly useless. Asks inane questions all the time, such as, 'Shall we open some overseas offices, or have we already done that sort of thing?' Before leaving at 3 pm, he eats packed lunch from home, because he can't eat anything without bran.

It's the circle of life.
[End]

Remember the law of backward-bending Labor Supply Curve? This jokes is exactly relating to the law.

In the law of backward-bending Labor Supply Curve, it is assumed that when the wage level is relatively low, worker will supply his labor at low level. As the wage level is increasing, the level of labor supplied will increase as well. And it will reach a point (=wage level) where the level of labor supplied will fall as the wage increases further.

From point 0 to turning point, Substitution Effect is dominating Income Effect. From turning point onwards, Income Effect is dominating Substitution Effect. In a contemporary languange, the last two sentences says :

When income is low, you will work more as income increases. But when your income is high enough, you will supply less amount of labor as you prefer to use your time for leisure activities.

Economics is interesting right? [Economics offers you view of how the world works].

I do not want to leave academics world

University is like my lover. I am happy to go to the Library. I am happy to read textbooks. I am happy to read journals. I am happy to attend Lectures. I am happy to do assignments. I am happy to sit in courses I am not registered for just for the sake of knowledge. I am happy to discuss academic issues. I am happy attending research seminars, although I do not understand completely what they said. It is just a sense of complete happiness entering academics environment. I feel that my soul and my excitement are there.

The more I learn, the more I feel that I know so little. The more I realize that there are finitely infinite things out there. It also makes me realized how weak human is. But still, many of us feel as the smartest person on earth.

Whenever I am thinking of the possibility that this semester will be my last semester in University for lifetime, I am worried, I feel sad. There is a feeling that I do not want to leave academics environment. Is living as an academics my path of life? Is it the plan God has for my life?

Deep inside my heart, I really would like to continue my PhD study in Economics. Day by day, Economics is expanding its territory within my life. Economics, Mathematics, and Statistics are always wandering in my mind on most of my days. I hope I do well in my Master's study. I hope that I could build a very good research proposal. I hope that I get a good GRE result. I hope that I get a PhD admission somewhere in this world. I know efforts are needed. I will do what (the right one) I can do to pursue this dream. If it is His will, everything will go smoothly. Nothing in the world is big enough to stop His will.

Ok, now focus on your last semester of Master's degree. Do well. Then prepare your research proposal. Prepare for GRE and take the test. Do not forget to pray. Ask wisdom and guidance from God. I believe in an old saying, If there is a will, there is a way.

God, please show me the way. Please tell me who I am and why I am on earth. Let me live according to Your will only.

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Mini-bond Saga : Are financiers wrong?

3 Days ago, when I was walking on the street, I passed in front of a bank. There were 3 people standing in front of the bank and shouting 'Banks are greedy', 'Be Careful, Devils inside'.

What they did was related to the mini-bond saga (Lehman Brothers related) aroused 5 months ago. Just to refresh your memory, huge proportion of the victims are 50 years old and above. Most of people in this age category did not have enough knowledge of investment product which they bought. They bought the product based on the knowledge they have and from the financiers (of financial institutions).

But now, are financiers the one to be blamed? are the victims? Probably, both of them are to be blamed.

Financiers are obliged to provide necessary information (based on the regulation) to clients. (1)

Clients must sign 'contract' verifying that they understand the product and they will accept any risk involved. (2)

If (1) & (2) occurs, no one is guilty.

But in fact, this (perfect) situation will never happen.
(1) Financiers probably will not provide necessary information. Financiers might only follow the minimum requirement of information distribution. They are driven by commission. In today's market, everyone believes that if the risks are well distributed (such as CDOs), everything is fine. Nothing bad will happen. What happen next is that no one takes responsibility of any risk.
(2) Although the clients signed a 'contract'. Probably they do not have any idea of what the investment product is about after all. They signed it merely based on their belief of 'it looks fine'. They are driven by promised return.

One of the flaws in (1) and (2) may be caused by greediness of both parties. Financiers are only driven by commission. Clients are driven by promised return.

Other possible party to be blamed is financial regulator. They need to revise the regulation so that risks are well taken care of. Incentive scheme should be formulated. Reward and Penalty must be properly defined.

What I would like to emphasize here is I just do not agree when people says banks are devils in this matter. As long as they have provided the necessary information, clients must take its own responsibility. Whatever happen (good or bad) are theirs to take. But if financiers are not giving enough information, then financiers are the culprit.

Monday, January 12, 2009

Consistency is the one that matters

I just finished watching a EPL match between Manchester United and Chelsea. I am happy that MU won by 3 goals to nil (3-0). It was a very entertaining match (for me). There was no sign at all that MU will ever lose in today's match. Attacks, Set-Pieces, Defense, basically everything was perfect. Van de Sar seems to just resting and having a cup of coffe under the bar.

Now MU is on the way to retain the English Premier League title again (with 2 games in hand, MU has the chance to be one point ahead of Liverpool given both keep winning the rest of the fixtures). I feel that Liverpool starts to losing its feet on the ground. They just dropped another 2 points yesterday against Stoke City. Probably Liverpool is on its way down now. Liverpool was always a good team in one half of the season (either beginning or end of it). This inconsistency is very costly to them every year. The only thing they lack of is consistency.

Anyway, in any sport league, consistency is the one really matters. You will be rewarded by your consistency. If you are consistenly doing good, you will get the prize. To an extent, Our Life is analogous to Sport League. Life is a journey and we all will be tested over and over again. In the end, only the one who strong enough (or persistent) will get the prize (our personal goals).

Let live life to the fullest. God bless you.

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

Recommended reading to refresh your Christianity values

Today, I just finished reading a book titled 'Know What You Believe - A Practical Discussion of the fundamentals of Christian Faith' by Paul. E. Little, and I would like to urge those who wants to solidify or to refresh your Christian Faith, to read this book. It is a thin book (147 pages-with a small page size) and the explanations are very down-to-earth.

Hope Your Faith in Jesus Christ is Strong until the Day He comes for the Second Time. God bless you all... =)

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

Sinner's Prayer

I arrived in Hong Kong 5 months ago to start my postgraduate studies in Economics (at University of Hong Kong). I feel extremely blessed to be given a chance to study here. I must say that by God's Grace only, I could come here. Otherwise, it will not be possible. I did not have a good undergraduate GPA (although I do have decent co-curricular activities). To be simple, I am very thankful for God's Mercy on me. He still gave me this wonderful chance of studying despite of my rebellious life to Him. I must admit that I did not live with His Standards for the last few years. I often did not follow His Commands. But He still loves me. I often feel guilty and asked for forgiveness for my careless acts. But after a while, I fell into the same holes again and again. But He still loves me. The feeling as 'A Lost Child' comes over and over again. Everyday I am trying to live up to His Standards, but I am still far behind it.

Jesus, I pray that You forgive all my sins, all my rebellious acts, my doubts in You. You have blessed and taken care me as Your child, but I did not thankful for it. I am sorry, Jesus. I know that I was wrong. I pray that You open the eyes of my heart and my ears so that I could understand the unconditional Love You have in me. I know I am far behind from Your Standards. But Jesus, please cleanse me, teach me, and guide me through my entire life. I know I have been a proud man in the past. I know I have had unholy state of minds in the past. But now, I ask for your forgiveness. Please make me new. I do not want to live like the past. I want to have a holy and an acceptable life in Your eyes. Jesus, please hear my prayer. In Jesus's Name I Pray. Amen.

Monday, January 5, 2009

New Year's Resolution

Another new year, another resolution. Here are the list of my new year's resolution :
1. Build a close relationship with God through prayers, and living by His standards
2. Be More Grateful and Be More Contented with everything God has entrusted to me
3. Be More Focused on Study
4. Finding the direction of life
5. Having a healthy lifestyle (eat more fruits & vegetables, regular exercise, enough sleep, eat less fat)
6. Managing time effficiently
7. Eliminate Distractions
8. Stop dwelling in the past
9. Positive and Optimistic State of Mind

I hope the current New Year's Resolutions are doable.

Wish you have a blessed year in 2009. God bless you.

Sunday, January 4, 2009

Mixed Thought - Part 1

For the last few days, I was observing my surroundings. I was wondering what could possibly be the basic reason why globalization occurs. When I walked on the streets, I saw many different kinds of shops. There are shops selling clothes. There are shops selling electronics. There are shops selling books, and so on. What amazed me was that the items on the 'shelf' are accompanied with brand. They are not alone. They are not only commodities. It is no doubt one of the impacts of globalization. People are taught not to be rational. They are taught to be emotional. Each brand has its own profile. It is not the same as the beginning of human race, when people just went and hunted for food without thinking of any brand. I saw consumerism as a result of globalization. People becomes greedy. People are buying things that they do not need. Wasting all resources. Often, I thought about the irony of this world. On one part of the world, people are living with so much resources, and so much luxury, where on the other part of the world, people are living in a very unacceptable conditions (even it is a struggle for them to survive a day). This is completely strange. Income gap between the poor and the rich are widening. I believe that if reduce our excess consumption, we could save many other people in the world who live in extreme deficit. By why we can't do it? The world has more than enough smart people to solve this problem. But again why it is never done? Are we, humans, that ignorant of others? I can't give an answer. It seems the law of the jungle still relevant to the current time. The strong always wins. People with more capital seems to be analogous with more weapon to hunt. Yes, it is true. After all the luxurious life, consumerism, what then? What did you get? Fame? Good Social Status? In the end of the day, everyone will die. No one lives forever in this earth. Probably I should not say this. It sounds really pathetic. People are really greedy for money and for powers. The current financial crises is one of the proofs. They are looking for profits blindly. Careless. It seems that there is no end of wants. Today, money is regarded as symbol of power. Some people says with money, you are a King. This means, you could do whatever you want with your money. Money could destroy relationships. We often see best friends become enemies due to money. The (almost) whole system of the world is corrupted in many ways. There is only one truth in the world that God exists. It is hard to deny this fact. There must be Someone who created the Universe, Humans, Animals, Plants. And we, humans, believe that that Someone is God. I liked to see children. Children (especially under 5 years old) are pure. They do not have evil thoughts. Adults are lack of this attitude. When children are getting older, ideas, doctrines, are planted in their minds. Their minds become corrupted. They start to think of bad things. Envy, Jealousy, Pride, and so on (although the Good things are still there). The point is that their minds are not as pure as before. World becomes like a pile of garbage which stinks. Almost all systems in the world rooted in ego. People wants to become richer. People wants to have a happy family. People wants to get better education. People wants to be popular. It is all ego. But is it wrong to have an ego? Again, I cannot say. I feel that an element of ego is there in human minds by nature. When you are hungry, you want to eat. That is an ego. You do not want to starve. Hungry here is a broad definition. It could be anything. Hungry for food, for knowledge, for powers, for money, and so on. I believe that life should be more than making money. We, as part of the society, must contribute something to the society. Only then, our life becomes meaningful.

It is a real mixed thought. I just jot down what crossed in my mind. I just want to express it in this blog. No general idea of the blog. Comments, Critiques, Ideas are extremely welcomed.

Saturday, January 3, 2009

How to Be Thankful in Tough Times

How to Be Thankful in Tough Times
by Rick Warren

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Philippians 4:6 (NLT)

*** *** *** ***

1. Don’t worry about anything. Worrying doesn’t change anything. It’s stewing without doing. There’s no such thing as born worriers; worry is a learned response. You learned it from your parents. You learned it from your peers. You learned it from experience. That’s good news. The fact that worry is learned means it can also be unlearned. Jesus says, “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today” (Matthew 6:34 NLT).

2. Pray about everything. Use the time you’ve spent worrying for praying. If you prayed as much as you worried, you’d have a whole lot less to worry about. Some people think God only cares about religious things, such as how many people I invite to church or my tithing. Is God interested in car payments? Yes. He’s interested in every detail of your life. That means you can take any problem you face to God.

3. Thank God in all things. Whenever you pray, you should always pray with thanksgiving. The healthiest human emotion is not love, but gratitude. It actually increases your immunities; it makes you more resistant to stress and less susceptible to illness. People who are grateful are happy. But people who are ungrateful are miserable because nothing makes them happy. They’re never satisfied; it’s never good enough. So if you cultivate the attitude of gratitude, of being thankful in everything, it reduces stress in your life.

4. Think about the right things. If you want to reduce the level of stress in your life, you must change the way you think. The way you think determines how you feel, and the way you feel determines how you act. So if you want to change your life, you need to change what you’re thinking about.

This involves a deliberate, conscious choice where you change the channels. You choose to think about the right things: focus on the positive and on God’s Word. Why? Because the root cause of stress is the way you choose to think.

When we no longer worry, when we pray about everything, when we give thanks, when we focus on the right things, the apostle Paul tells us the result is, “The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:7 NLT).

What a guarantee! He is guaranteeing peace of mind.

© 2009 Purpose Driven Life. All rights reserved.

Friday, January 2, 2009

Lessons in Contentment

Lessons in Contentment
by Rick Warren

I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. Philippians 4:11 (NIV)

*** *** *** ***

Here are four steps to develop contentment in your life.

1. Stop comparing yourself to others. When you compare your life with someone else’s, the only place it can lead is toward discontentment. There will always be people who appear to be better off than you, but you don’t know their real circumstances.

I recall counseling a husband many years ago, and he said he wished his wife could be more like so-and-so, and he named a woman in our congregation. What he didn’t know is that the woman was a functioning alcoholic causing incredible heartache and stress for her family and for her husband.

That’s why the Bible teaches it is unwise to compare (2 Corinthians 10:12).

2. Be grateful for who you are and what you have. Learning to be content requires that you stop any “when and then” thinking – “When I am ___________, then I’ll be happy.” (You fill in the blank.)

The reason we fall into this trap is that we may actually be content for a little while but it won’t last. But, more than likely, someone else or something else will come along and drain the contentment from your life.

But listen, you are unique. God created you to be like nobody else, so why would you want to be anyone else. God is perfect, and you were his perfect choice to be you. Understanding that is a huge step toward being content with your life.

And then look at all the things God has given you. So often we allow what we don’t have to so dominate our focus that we forget the many wonderful things we already have, not only material blessing, but far more important things, such as family and friends.

3. Give yourself to others. If you will begin giving yourself to others, sharing what things you do have, sharing your time and your talents, you will find yourself learning to be content. Helping others will give you an appreciation for what you have and who you are, but more importantly, you will find yourself growing content. Why? Because God designed us to serve and share with others, and until we do that, we will feel great discontent.

4. Focus on things with eternal value. The real secret to becoming content is to focus on the things that have eternal value. It may be a familiar teaching to you, but Jesus said we should store up our treasures in heaven, and not on earth “where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal” (Matthew 6:19-21 NIV).

Think about the things in your life: What will last forever? What will last at least for your lifetime? What will last a few short years, or months, or days? Based on eternal value, what things are most important in your life? Where – and with whom – should you put your most time and energy?

By re-organizing your life around eternal priorities, you’ll find yourself growing in contentment as you live according to God’s design and purpose.

© 2008 Purpose Driven Life. All rights reserved.