LIFE AFTER DEATH, A PURE HEART OF GOLD: Learn the Value of Your Life and Think Growth and Riches

By Crisanto Walli, Raymond Aaron and Loral Langemeier

A man died and went to heaven. Life After Death, A Pure Heart of Gold: Learn the Value of Your Life and Think Growth and Riches shares this man's story as he is transformed into a bird and travels around the world. Along the way, he shares lessons and principles learned by others, gleaned from their lives. With plenty of references to beloved characters from the Bible, Crisanto weaves a fable filled with amazing principles and life lessons that you can incorporate into your daily life. Life After Death, A Pure Heart of Gold will inspire you to incorporate love, forgiveness, and humble service into every aspect of your life. With relatable and heartwarming characters, Crisanto weaves the wisdom of the ages into each chapter. You will find yourself reading this book over and over, as you absorb more wisdom and knowledge from its pages. Life After Death, A Pure Heart of Gold: Learn the Value of Your Life and Think Growth and Riches is a guidebook that will spark your spirituality, your creativity, and most importantly, your love for others. This is a fable that is so much more than a good story. It is wisdom on the written page.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: May 24, 2022
• ISBN: 9781772774948

Book preview

Chapter 1

Death Opens a Door

1

Death happens for all of us, whether rich or poor. We all face God’s judgment, sharing the lessons we learned and exploring what our lives have meant for ourselves and others. Once upon a time, the richest man in the world died. His family mourned him, and he passed from this world to heaven.

There he met God and sat down before him to wait for his judgment. After days had passed, God finally spoke to the rich man.

God’s booming voice flowed over the rich man. Tell me what you did with the life I gave you.

The rich man sat quietly for a moment, collecting his thoughts. Then he shared the story of his life with God.

I was born in a poor community. It was such a struggle for my family. We were poor and often did not have enough to feed and care for ourselves. I went to the local school but only for a few years. It cost money to get an education, and my family did not have it.

So what did you do? said God, as though He did not already know the answer.

I went to work, helping my family. But I didn’t want to work forever, just for my children to struggle in the same way. I wanted to be rich. There was no one rich in my community, so I had no idea how to become rich. The path was not clear.

But you are here, and you died rich. So, you must have found the path, said God.

I did, but first I tried several paths that were just dead ends. My friends kept helping me to find jobs. I was working and working, but it seemed that as soon as the money came in, there was an emergency or other need for my family. I knew that I could work forever and never become rich. Working hard was not enough to reach my goal of being rich.

Interesting to hear you refer to being rich as a goal, said God, a slight smile on his face.

Well, I didn’t know that it was a goal at the time. There had been no one to explain to me what a goal was or how it could help me to achieve my dreams, said the rich man. One day, my little sister came home from the library with books. They covered so many different topics. Even though it was hard to find the time to go the library, I managed to arrange my work so I could explore this place. It was a wonder! There were books on every topic. I found myself checking out different books, taking them with me wherever I went. If I had a spare minute, I was reading. It was not easy. There were words and phrases I didn’t understand. I had to ask the librarian for help. But all that reading helped my vocabulary and education to grow.

Is that where you learned about goals? asked God.

Yes, it was. The librarian directed me to a section where books about goals were located. I hadn’t read any books here yet, but she knew that I had a desire to change my life. Her direction to this section was a critical part of my journey. Not only was I reading about goals for the first time, I was learning how those goals are key to my financial freedom. It opened my eyes to what was possible. My approach had been all wrong. I might want to be rich, but I had no plan to achieve that dream. Those books were the key that unlocked so much for me because they opened my eyes about the importance of setting goals. It was eye-opening to learn that writing down goals could help you to achieve them. I hadn’t even identified my goals, let alone put them down on paper.

What were the first goals you made for yourself? God looked interested to hear the rich man’s answer.

Well, the one thing that I learned from all those books was that I couldn’t just go from being poor to financial freedom. There were going to be a lot of little goals along the way that would get me from being poor to being rich. That meant figuring out each of those little goals and creating a plan of action.

What is a plan of action? God asked, wanting to hear the rich man’s reply.

Well, it involved laying out where I was coming from and where I wanted to go. I wrote down what I wanted to do, what I wanted to have, what I wanted to see in my life, what I wanted to be, and how I could achieve all that by reading and acting on the lessons within those books. I was giving myself the education that I hadn’t gotten from a formal school system. All these experts were now my professors, and I was enjoying everything that I was learning. However, it was more than just gaining knowledge. I realized that I had to act on what I was learning.

Build a Plan of Action

Who I am

Where I come from

Where I want to go

What I want to do

What I want to have

What I want to see

What I want to be

While I was learning about goals and how to create a plan of action, I realized that I was already acting in a way that would help me to reach my goal.

Why? What were you doing? said God, as he stroked his chin.

I was reading books to educate myself. It was during that process that I realized I was investing in myself through education. That education allowed me to change my mindset. Instead of having a poor mindset, I had developed a rich mindset. I was focused on learning to value my life and to tax myself to create a plan and follow it, to invest in starting a new business. Along the way, I developed my gratitude for being in the world and for my ability to change my life. Of course, it was important that I stay patient. After all, my education did not happen overnight. That took time. Eventually, I was ready to to take a calculated risk with my life. But while I was trying to better myself, I realized that more individuals needed this knowledge besides myself.

Giving is powerful, said God.

Opening my business was a blessing, but as I helped others, my blessings only got bigger. My family was still poor, but by hiring them, I was providing jobs that would allow them to improve their finances. The business kept growing, and now I had to move beyond my family to hire neighbors. The community was uplifted by my business, and I felt a great deal of joy. I was making my way toward my goal of being rich, but was not there yet. So then I focused on buying assets and investing. Big companies that sold soft drinks, auto companies, mining, real estate, and food chains were all part of my investments. Every investment brought me greater returns, which I reinvested, and my wealth grew.

Did you just hoard your wealth? asked God, smiling to himself. He had watched the rich man as his wealth had grown, so he knew what the rich man had done.

God, I felt joy in helping others find employment, but I knew that my wealth gave me the chance to give to more people, helping them with other challenges in the community. I put my money in educational foundations, charities, and more, all with the goal of helping other people.

So the rich man sat with God, sharing his life story and the lessons he had learned, and the secrets he learned from reading those books and how he implemented them in his life. Here are just a few of the lessons they discussed.

•Invest in yourself to grow.

•Changing your life requires being focused.

Then he talked about his passion for helping others. God noted that others had focused on getting rich without thinking of how their goals and actions were impacting others. Their focus was so intense that they missed out on the importance of connecting with others. The best life is one that includes an element of service for others. The rich man had a love of others, and so everything he did to advance his goal