"For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul. Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? " St. Mark 8:36-37 KJV. This scripture is the central theme of this article. What profit is there to gain all of the things that this world has to offer, and spend eternity in a devil's hell. All of the fame and fortune, glamour, prosperity, millions, property, beauty, financial portfolios, and stocks, bonds, t-bills, gold, precious stones, pearls, Mikimotos, Rolex watches, Mercedes-Benz, Jaguars, Bentleys, Porsches, million dollar homes, and all of the "finer things of life " cannot equal the wonderful, precious, truth of the word and a Bible salvation that offers eternal rewards with it, cannot compare. Man has, and will do all that he can to achieve success in this life. He will start saving for college at a young age, or his parents will send their children to the best colleges, and universities. They will "nest-egg " monies for their future. The savings bonds, IRA's,
and even insurance policies that they will either borrow against, when there is cash value. Or use the policies " in-lieu-
of, " and will do whatever it takes to see to it that their young person, be it a son or a daughter gets the best out of life. And don't get me wrong, I am not saying that all of those things are bad, actually they are all very good, however, those are things that will inevitably face an individual when they become of age, and as life progresses, or they get older. There are some parents that will even, start their young children on disciplining and saving their own monies, or will teach them how to be "financially savvy, "or start them out with a CD, or some type of savings or checking account that will increase
it's dividends as they grow older, thus, putting it in a "safe place ", safety deposit box, or in a, " trust fund, "mutual fund, annuitity, or in some type of interest bearing account, with compounded interest and dividends. These are people that obviously, are very organized, professional, and are concerned about the financial future of their loved ones. That is a very commendable thing. Also, there are people that start saving early in life for retirement, or just plan on retiring early, buy investment property, or start and or perpetuate a business, that will be passed on to their posterity, or will teach son or daughter the basics or the overall picture and operations in order to have financial success.With all of the 401-k's the various tax- shelters that an individual can put into operation for their benefit,
and the "baby-boomers " working and saving for retirement, and all the emphasis that is put on financial goals and freedom, that will definitely keep man occupied and constantly figuring out ways to be prosperous, if not now, in the very near future. Also, the goal of every American is to be financially independent. Whetever avenue, through state and local or national lotteries, or riverboat gambling, casinos, betting, game shows, or whatever means possible, give us wealth.
Some will even consult the medium or psychic for information that they feel is pertinent to their jobs and careers, and will go to the limit to be an "over-achiever ." Restless nights, long work hours, neglecting family, friends, throwing out all morals and ethics to get a dollar, cheating people, tax frauds, and giving monies to charities, as a "money-will- come back to me" scheme if sowed in the right or fertile ground. Walking over our fellow man on the job, pushing down the other guy, overstepping our boundaries, kicking, and keeping down the underdog, oppressing the poor, tricking the elderly out of their long saved, and hard earned life savings, is just now the normal everyday occurences. Pushing that little child to someday become an olympic great, almost to the point of their desparity of life, making "Johnny" or little
"Susie " get involved with numerous activities, i.e, sports, drama, and all of the "American" things that we as a society have placed upon our young people. Now, again, do not get me wrong, we also do not want to raise gangbangers, hatch out theives, liars, robbers, murderers, womanizers, and prostitutes, or the derrogatory, or negative children either. It is not wrong to have and to expect productive children. It is the dream of all parents ( in their right minds ) to see their children successful in this life, with a good, and a happy life that not only builds respect, but lays the groundwork for their future sibblings too. Since children are great imitators of their parents, especially at a young age, we must be careful how we raise them and what they see us do will impact their lives either to the good or bad. A young lady who does not respect herself and has ilicit affairs with many men, will in many cases watch her daughter take on her mom's promiscuous ways. A man that disrespects his wife, and or women, will watch his son become a "player ." As the old saying goes, Just a chip off the old block. "
    Ultimately, the reason for this article is to help all people to be the very best that they can be, but, being the best is not just limited to material gain, or monies, or wealth. Being rich does not make good people, having A LOT OF EARTHLY, OR WORLDLY POSSESSIONS DOESN'T MAKE A BETTER MAN OR WOMAN. In fact, the more we get, the worse we become, because a certain, "air " or "attitude " or mindset or prejudice comes along with those things. Getting to the subject, my question, and I said all of that to say this, What type of life insurance do you have? I am not talking about Met Life, Prudential, State Farm, Allstate, Primerica, Reliable, or any of the insurance companies. ( They all serve their purpose to help people to put their financial goals into perspective ) I am asking you about a spiritual life insurance policy. What plans have you for the eternity that you will spend way more time than you will here. Look at it this way, our lives here on earth are just a drop in the bucket in comparison to the eternity that our existance will be placed either in heaven or hell forever. When you look at it that way, then life takes on a different meaning, doesn't it?
If you think what I am saying doesn't make sense to you now, or if it seems unimportant, then ask someone rich on their deathbed, ask them about their stocks, bonds, investments at the point of death. I guarantee you that the last thing that is on their minds would be finances. Also ask the cancer patient that is wealthy, how he is enjoying his wealth now? Money and material things are ok, but, the things that matter the most cannot be purchased with it. Countless people who are well off financially, are no happier than you and I . Money cannot bring happiness, as strange as it may seem. I know that we have to have a certain ammount to exist here on earth, but, that 's not all that life consists of. " And he said unto them,   take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consists not in the abundance of the things in which he posseseth. " St. Luke 12:15 KJV. This life is full of descisions, descisions about where we want to live, and with whom, and what we will accomplish, and planning for the future and we do not even know if the future will allow us to be present when it comes. Life is too uncertain, and so are riches. " Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God who giveth us richly all things to enjoy; That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate, Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life. " 1 Timothy 6:17-19 KJV
  This is what man should be laying up in store for, Notice how that the writer said, "uncertain riches ," everything that man has is just for a short time, and there are no guarantees. The Dow - Jones goes up and down, recessions come and go, so does times of great economic growth. Companies downsize, stocks go up and down, banks get constantly bought out, riches diminish, pilferage eat up profits and stifles profitability, fortune 500 companies fail too. Everything that man puts his trust in can, will, and has failed, why not seek for something that will endure forever. So, my question to you my friends is this: Do you have spiritual life insurance? Are you saved according to the word of the Lord? Have you repented of your sins, and been baptized in water in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, according to Acts2:38 KJV? This is the only scriptural way to " Make your calling and election sure." ( See 2 Peter 1:10 KJV )   All else is sinking sand. The economic status of an individual will not determine their eternal destiny as the popular preachers would have you believe. "For we bought nothing into this world, and it is certain that we will carry nothing out." 1 Timothy 6:7 KJV . So, if you have not paid your premiums, on your life insurance policy, it will lapse . So it is with God, actually he paid the premium price for your spiritual life insurance. What a deal! Jesus went to Calvary, suffered, bled, died, and rose again to put the policy in force. Nobody can even begin to give you the ammount of coverage that he purchased for you. You can't beat that! However, you must do something in order to put your policy in force and keep it that way. You must obey the gospel of our Lord and repentance, remission of sins in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, water baptism in his name, and then the infilling of the spirit of God with the scriptural evidence of speaking in other tongues as the spirit of God gives the utterance, continue stedfastly in the doctrine of the Apostles, then you won't have to ever worry about life coverage again. Do you have coverage? Are you covered by the blood of Christ, have you read the fine print of his word? You probably already know your net worth, what about your spiritual life worth? Is it worth more than the natural monies? Do a spiritual F.N.A ( Financial Needs Analysis ) or rather a, Find the N.ame of the A.lmighty ( Jesus Christ ) or F.inding N.ew A.ltitudes with Christ.
The End
Rodney Brooks