“As the biggest library if it is in disorder is not as useful as a small but well-arranged one, so you may accumulate a vast amount of knowledge but it will be of far less value to you than a much smaller amount if you have not thought it over for yourself; because only through ordering what you know by comparing every truth with every other truth can you take complete possession of your knowledge and get it into your power. You can think about only what you know, so you ought to learn something; on the other hand, you can know only what you have thought about.” IfsThinkingKnowsWellsMayHandsValuesOughtAmountLibraryPossessionCompareDisorder Author:Arthur Schopenhauer
“The Word says, ‘Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world’ (1 John 2:15). Jesus warned, ‘Beware of covetousness: for a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things which he possesses’ (Luke 12:15). Things—our possessions—can tie us down to this world. While heaven and hell prepare for war, we go shopping. Eternal values are at stake! The end of all we know is near—and we are busy playing with our toys!” KnowsMenWorldDoeWarEndsValuesJesusHeavenHellThis WorldEternalBusyPossessionTiesAbundanceStakesShoppingToysHeaven And HellLukeCovetousness Author:David Wilkerson
“There's nothing wrong with possessions; it's just that they have value to us only when we use them, engage them, and enjoy them. They're nouns that mean something only in conjunction with verbs. That's why wealth is so dangerous: if you're not careful you can easily end up with a garage full of nouns.” IfsMeanEndsUseValuesEnjoyWealthDangerousCarefulPossessionVerbsGarageNounsConjunctions Author:Rob Bell
“Less and less frequently do we encounter people with the ability to tell a tale properly. More and more often there is embarrassment all around when the wish to hear a story is expressed. It is as if something that seemed inalienable to us, the securest among our possessions, were taken from us: the ability to exchange our experiences...Experience has fallen in value. And it looks as if it is continuing to fall into bottomlessness.” PeopleIfsLooksStoriesValuesFallWishAbilityTakenPossessionTalesFallenEncountersContinuingIdealismEmbarrassment Author:Walter Benjamin
“We only begin to realize the value of our possessions when we commence to do good to others with them. No earthly investment pays so large an interest as charity.” ValuesInterestRealizingPayCharityInvestmentPossession Author:Joseph Cook
“It is a curious fact that personal possessions take on fictitious values and exceptional charms when the owner, no matter how generous, is faced with giving them away or even selling them (which usually amounts to the same thing).” GivingMatterFactsValuesAmountPossessionSellingCuriousGenerousCharmOwnersExceptional Author:Marjorie Hillis
“I tend to look out for things with a resonance to my youth—artists or objects that seemed romantic all those years ago. I never buy anything purely for its value. I like possessions that smile back at me.” YearsLooksArtistValuesObjectsYouthYears AgoPossessionResonance Author:Nicholas Haslam
“One of the great arts in living is to learn the art of accurately appraising values. Everything that we think, that we earn, that we have given to us, that in any way touches our consciousness, has its own value. These values are apt to change with the mood, with time, or because of circumstances. We cannot safely tie to any material value. The values of all material possessions change continually, sometimes over night. Nothing of this nature has any permanent set value. The real values are those that stay by you, give you happiness and enrich you. They are the human values.” ThinkingWayGivingHumansArtRealSometimesNightValuesGivenConsciousnessMaterialsCircumstancesPossessionMoodPermanentTiesGreat ArtHuman ValuesReal ValueMaterial Possessions Author:George Matthew Adams