A jobless man from Argentina who found $50,000 buried in trash is being sued by the woman who claims she lost the fortune. Recent economic problems in the country have forced thousands of Argentines to earn their living by collecting and selling street garbage such as cardboard. 46-year-old Paulo Altamirano found the money while collecting cardboard in the central city of Corboda. He used the money to improve his position in life by buying a corner shop and two automobiles.

70-year-old store owner, Emilia Mascoy heard about Altamirano's good fortune and filed a lawsuit for fraud. She claims her maid accidentally threw out the box of cash while doing spring-cleaning at her home. Mascoy is demanding that Altamirano return the money immediately. A local news agency quotes Altamirano as saying, "All I can say is that I am no criminal."

—Reuters, Finders Keepers? Man Sued after $50,000 Find, Friday, June 4, 2004. Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

Who knows what the courts in Argentina will decide about this case, but Jesus guaranteed that everyone who seeks Him and His word will find something that cannot be taken away.

Luke 10:41-42 (NIV) “‘Martha, Martha,’ the Lord answered, ‘you are worried and upset about many things, [42] but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.’"

More parents are working outside the home these days, and many are finding their schedules stretched thin. The result has been the arrival of a new group of children known as "Tweens." Tweens are generally between 9 and 14 years of age, with an average weekly income of more than $20.

These young people are at the center of a shift in American families. Often, they live in single parent or blended families. When both parents are present, they are often both working. When adults are low on time, and their children are raised in an environment of entitlement, the result is financial bonanza for a generation of young people. Ten years ago, 9 to 14 year olds received an average of 6 dollars a week. In 2000, the total income for this age group was over $22, with 43 percent of that money coming from allowances.

Carleton Kendrick, a Boston-based family therapist says the Tween's bulging banks are filled with "I'm sorry money: I'm sorry I'm not home more; I'm sorry we don't have dinner as a family."

The growing concern is that parents are giving more to their children without the idea that they should earn it, and this financial entitlement is reshaping childhood itself. Parents are giving money to their children to make up for quality time they feel they cannot provide. The guilt of parents may be creating an atmosphere of greed in their children, as the tweens see money as their right. These children receive money from their parents but lack parental instruction about saving, giving, and spending patterns that match one's values.

When parents take time with their children, they communicate how much they treasure their children. When money becomes a substitute for parent's attention, what will children learn to value?

—Christian Science Monitor, May 6, 2002, Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

Trying to catch Barry Bond's historic 661st career home run cost a San Francisco fan more than he imagined. The man, who has not been identified, was in the right field stands when Bonds walloped his 661st career homer, April 13th. He apparently thought he could grab the valuable ball as it went by. Instead, he fell from the back of the stadium, which is an open pedestrian area, two floors above ground level.

A spokesman for the San Francisco Giants, Jim Morehead says the man "fell off the wall and landed on his wrists and also suffered a laceration to his head." Morehead says another fan fell off the right field wall last season and was killed.

The home run allowed Bonds to overtake Willie Mays for third place on the all time baseball home run list, and thus the ball will likely prove profitable. The ball actually landed in San Francisco bay, which is just beyond the stadium. It was eventually recovered by the same fan who retrieved Bonds 660th home run the night before.

—Reuters, Fan Falls from Stands Chasing Historic Homer, April 15, 2004. Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

Matthew 6:19-21 NIV "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure in, there you heart will be also."

After traveling numerous miles and years in the suitcase of a BBC foreign correspondent, a small 16th-century painting has been returned to its rightful owner. BBC reporter Charles Wheeler says a farmer gave the portrait of Eleonora of Toledo by Alessandro Allori to him in 1952. The farmer claimed he had traded a Russian soldier for two bags of potatoes, and gave it to Wheeler as a "wedding gift."

Wheeler liked the painting so much that he carried it around with him for years, but never realized the 5-inch square oil-on-wood painting was so important. Wheeler contacted the Commission for Looted Art in Europe about the painting recently. They discovered it missing from a Germany gallery after World War II. The Berlin gallery believed the painting had either been taken to Russia after the war or burned. Commission Co-chair Anne Webber said, "We are delighted to have made the possible identification and return this lovely painting." Webber added, "They had believed the picture had disappeared forever, and suddenly here it was."

—http://www.timesofoman.com/newsdetails.asp?newsid=31039. Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

2 Timothy 1:14 (NIV) "Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you—guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us."

The thieves who recently broke into the offices of an agency serving the poor of Ohio did not get away with much. In fact, when they stole a safe, they actually did the agency a favor. Authorities say the robbers entered the agency's offices through a back door after business hours one Monday evening, and stole the office safe. They did not know it was empty.

Susan Simpkins, director of the Fostoria Bureau of Concern, said the agency had wanted to throw the old safe away, but it was too big to move. Simpkins added, "It was really quite comical. It was very heavy, and they did us a favor by taking it." Though the safe was empty, police said the thieves did take a small amount of money from the office's petty cash supply.

—Associated Press, Thieves in Ohio Steal Empty Safe, March 9, 2005. Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

More than one person has been fooled pursuing treasurer. This time, the safe was literally empty, other times people find that the riches of the world leave them feeling empty inside, not giving them the satisfaction they were seeking.

Matthew 6:19-21 (MSG) "Don't hoard treasure down here where it gets eaten by moths and corroded by rust or—worse!—stolen by burglars. [20] Stockpile treasure in heaven, where it's safe from moth and rust and burglars. [21] It's obvious, isn't it? The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being."

The Salvation Army in Wisconsin began an unusual Easter egg hunt after a family mistakenly donated eggs stuffed with cash. The Thrift Store Manager Paul Kolb said a family donated plastic Easter eggs after a deceased grandmother passed away in January. Two months later a woman came into the store two months looking for the eggs. She had been looking through her grandmother's dairy and discovered that the older woman had been planning an Easter surprise for the family, filling eggs with money instead of candy.

Kolb said it wasn't the first time someone has returned looking to reclaim sentimental objects or things donated by mistake. Kolb says they are asking the person who purchased the eggs to return them to the original owner, but added the hunt had just begun. He said, "As a thrift store manager, I can understand the excitement of finding a treasure. However, under these circumstances, you have only found a lost item, mistakenly given in good faith to benefit those in need."

—Associated Press, Easter Eggs Stuffed With Cash Mistakenly Donated, March 27, 2005. Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

Matthew 13:44 (AMP) "The kingdom of heaven is like something precious buried in a field, which a man found and hid again; then in his joy he goes and sells all he has and buys that field."

A painting that had been hidden in an attic for over sixty years recently sold for over a million dollars at auction. Art Historians were not aware that the 12 by 26 inch landscape by 19th century American painter Martin Johnson Heade existed. Antique experts filming a television special stumbled across the painting in a Boston area home.

Martin Johnson Heade died in 1904 and was considered a major artist during his lifetime. Experts now classify him as one of the best American romantic painters. Though Heade was well known, several of his paintings have been found in unusual places. Another of Heade's paintings was discovered hanging in an Indiana home. The homeowners were using the artwork to cover a hole in the wall. That painting later sold for $1.25 million.

—Reuters, December 8, 2003, Painting Found in Attic Fetches $1 Million, Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

Matthew 6:19-21 NIV "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

A cleaner at a modern art gallery in Britain accidentally threw away a bag of garbage that was part of an artwork display because he thought the transparent bag full of newspaper, cardboard and other odd bits of paper was trash.

The plastic bag was actually part of a work of art by a German born artist. It was on display next to a sheet of nylon that had been splattered with acid, and a metal sculpture on a table. The cleaner thought the plastic bag was part of the day's garbage and tossed it out with the trash.

A museum spokesman said the mistake occurred the day before the exhibition opened at the end of June. Although the bag was later rescued, it had been damaged and the artist had to replace it. The spokesman did not say how much it cost to replace the bag but added, "It's now covered over at night so it can't be removed."

—Reuters, August 29, 2004, Cleaner Tosses Art Out With the Garbage. Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

Sometimes it is hard to distinguish between things that are disposable and things that are valuable. People make the mistake all the time.

Matthew 16:26 (NLT) "And how do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul in the process? Is anything worth more than your soul?"

An elderly Ohio woman who recently passed away decided to leave her entire estate to the federal government, requesting the money be used to help pay down the national debt. The woman, Margaret Taylor, had no brothers or sisters or children. Her husband died in 1977. Instead of giving to charity, she decided to give her $1.1 million estate to the U.S. government.

Taylor was well known in her community for being generous, giving to charity, her church, and friends. Taylor's attorney and executor of the will Attorney Tom Drake said Taylor firmly believed the national debt should be paid off and wanted to do her part. Drake added, "It's not what I would have advised her to do with it, but she wasn't really interested in my opinion. In the end, an attorney has to listen to their client. That's what I did."

An official with the Treasury Department said they could not remember a larger gift and said Taylor's might be the biggest ever received by the government.

—Associated Press, Millionaire Leaves Entire Estate to Pay National Debt, January 20, 2006. Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

Matthew 6:19-21 (RSV) "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal, [20] but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. [21] For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."

An Israeli woman, who has a fear of banks, claims she accidentally threw nearly one million dollars into the trash. The woman told reporters that she bought her elderly mother a new mattress as a surprise present. After she replaced the old one, she remembered that her life savings, nearly one million dollars in US and Israeli currency, was hidden inside. She rushed to the curb, but the garbage collectors had already come by. The woman, who asked not to be identified said, “I woke up in the morning screaming, when it hit me what happened. It was all my money I the world.”

Yitzhak Borba, the manager of the dump said the woman came to him “totally desperate.” He allowed her to dig through the piles of garbage but said the mattress would be hard to find among the 2,500 tons of garbage that arrive every day. Borba posted extra security to keep treasure hunters away.

--Woman claims Loss of $1 Million Mattress, http://www.examiner.com/a-2061607~Israeli_woman_mistakenly_junks__1_million_mattress.html?cid=rss-Strange ; June 10, 2009, Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell

Matthew 6:19-21 (MaceNT) “Lay not up for your selves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal. 20 but lay up for your selves treasures in heaven, where there is neither moth, nor rust, nor corruption, nor thieves, nor violence to molest you. 21 for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”

The parking garage at police headquarters in Ofunato, Japan has no room for cars. Instead, the garage is filled with hundreds of dented mental safes. Authorities believe most of them contain someone’s life saving which were swept out to sea by the recent tsunami. Officials say safes are still washing up along the coast, and police are struggling to locate their owners. The problem is compounded by the fact that many people, especially the elderly in Japan, do not use banks, preferring to stash their cash at home. The practice is called “wardrobe savings.” A recent government estimate calculated nearly $350 billion worth of yen does not circulate within the nation’s economy.

Police departments along the Japanese coast say the task of collecting the money is stretching already thin resources. Identifying the owners of the safes is hard enough, but it is nearly impossible to figure out who owns the wads of cash they find in envelops, unmarked bags, boxes, and furniture. Resident Yasuo Kimura considers himself fortunate. The retired bank employee escaped with his 90 year-old father and the clothes they were wearing when the tsunami destroyed his home. He says he still has his money because he chooses to put it in the bank. Kimura says many of his friends and family were not so fortunate. He said, “I spent my career trying to convince them to deposit their money in a bank. They always thought it was safer to keep it at home.”

Safes, cash wash up on Japan shores after tsunami, http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/as_japan_earthquake_lost_money; April 10, 2011, Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell

Matthew 6:19-21 (CEV) (19) Don't store up treasures on earth! Moths and rust can destroy them, and thieves can break in and steal them. (20) Instead, store up your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy them, and thieves cannot break in and steal them. (21) Your heart will always be where your treasure is.

Archaeologists discovered 42-foot tall statue of the grandfather of Tutankhamun, Amenhotep III, in Egypt on Tuesday April 26 2011. Amenhotep ruled Egypt’s New Kingdom in the 14th Century. His empire went from Syria in the north, to Nubia in the south, it was a vast and wealthy nation; the most powerful of its time. Floods and an earthquake destroyed his temple. Today, he possesses no wealth or power now, and his palace is a ruin. His statues are now simply artifacts of a long gone era.

--http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/42764009/ns/technology_and_science-science/ Illustration by Jim L. Wilson and Miguel Martinez

Matthew 6:19-21 (NASB77) (19) " Do not lay up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. (20) "But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; (21) for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

For years a priceless vase sat in a French family’s attic, hidden in a shoebox. The family had received the heirloom as part of an inheritance, but stashed the boxes in the attic planning to deal with them later. When the owner opened the box, they were stunned by the shades of green, blue, yellow, and purple used to depict deer, birds, and other animals in a wooded area. The vase included gold embroidery and had the mark of an emperor who ruled China from 1736 to 1796. The owner was stunned to learn the vase could be worth a fortune. When it went to auction, people keep bidding, battling for the prize. The final sales price was just over $19 million, the highest price ever for an item sold by Sotheby’s in France. A spokeswoman said, “They knew it had some value but nothing like that, nor that it was from the Qian dynasty.”—Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/chinese-vase-found-shoebox-sells-19-million-115534130.html

“Don’t store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves don’t break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.