VALUE

This is probably going up on both blogs because it is such an important topic:

I have spent the last school year studying economics. I wish I could say I enjoyed the topic, I wish I could say I excelled in the class, but most of all, I wish it were over. It isn't, I still have another couple of weeks to go. So, if it sounds like I am hating on economics, or economists, I will be the first to admit I am prejudiced in the subject, I'm fairly sure I will think more highly of it in about a year or so.

What economics basically boils down (more or less) to is the study of value. How to express value, how to improve value, how to market value, what economy produces the most value, how to provide incentives for value, how to trade value, who values this more than that and is willing to trade, etc.

Now, Economists would LOVE it if value was material, if it was something that could be measured, plugged into some obscure formula. But here is the difficulty, Value can't be pinned down. (That is what money tries to do, it attempts to convey value from person to person in a way that eliminates the difficulty of trading for things of exact matching value. The problem is that money itself can loose value, when there is an excess of it, or gain value when it is scarce, can be invested in things and lost, etc.) You've probably all heard the saying, one man's junk is another man's treasure. Value is SUBJECTIVE, it is, for the most part, an opinion. Gold is just a metal, an element like aluminum or copper. It's value lies in the fact that, like money, it is used to CONVEY "value" (and of course, it makes pretty jewelry) (technically, also because it is scarce and can't be produced and distributed by the government).

I'm not trying to give you a crash course in Economics. I am trying to explain that value does not always mean what you think it does. Value is defined as "The regard that something is held to deserve". Value is how people see something, measured by what they would be willing to give up for it (approx. economics was not my best course). And how people see things can be influenced by a number of factors, including- but not limited to- general opinion, the media, personal connections (i.e.- sentiment, memories), what we are taught, etc.

But we make the awful mistake of letting OPINION get in the way of TRUTH. We allow our perception of our own value to stem from how other people see us, what we see, what we are told makes someone valuable, INSTEAD of letting our value come from truth, from the one who made us, who VALUED us enough to die for our salvation, something money, gold, all the "riches" of this world, no matter how "valuable" they were regarded to be, could not buy.

So, what lies do we believe, what opinions do we buy into, what measuring-sticks do we use to determine our "value"? (disclaimer- the major points below, not my insights obviously, but the numbered points come from the sermon I listened to today)

1.- Value is based on APPEARANCE
     I think girls struggle the most with this one. I'm sure guys do too, but since I'm a girl, I understand their side more. And, sadly, I think this is the lie most girls fall for. I know I have, I know I still do. It's so easy to see a girl who is, by popular opinion, beautiful, and think "if only I looked more like her, I'd be worth more." But, since so many girls struggle with this, obviously it isn't their idea to say "Hey, look, you should all look like me", because they are comparing themselves to someone else and wishing they looked like her. So where did it come from? I'm going to have to pull the culture card out. CULTURE (aka, media, presented opinions, etc.) is what establishes the "beauty standard". Did you know in some cultures, it is larger women who are considered the most beautiful? This is because in those countries, fat is a sign of wealth. In places where there is little, it is those who have more that are valued more. Isn't it painfully, frustratingly ironic that in America, where we have so much, it is those who look like they are malnourished, or starving, that are considered beautiful? Isn't it sad that gorgeous, healthy young women think they have to look like an airbrushed, anexoric super-model to have any value in the world?
We are GOD'S WORKMANSHIP (some translations say masterpiece). I am not an accident, you are not an accident, God did not go on a coffee break and forget to finish forming us the way he wanted.

2.- Value (aka, significance) is based on ACHIEVEMENT
     Ah, yes. this one I struggle with. I do fairly well in school, and too often I base my view of myself on just how well I did. I'm "stupid" or "worthless" if I fail anything, from science to math, you name it. If I don't do better than anyone else, I'm worth less than they are. This is a LIE. God made us all differently, uniquely. If we all had the same gifts, this world would be unbelievably dull, we would never LEARN anything, we wouldn't be able to grow or to excel using the gifts God has given us. There isn't a "better" or a "more significant" job, but there are different ones.

3- Value is based on APPROVAL
     Ouch. This one hurts MOST of all. I have obsessed, and fretted, and worried about what other people think of me more than I would like to admit. It's so tempting to just let the world judge you and accept their viewpoint, to adopt it as your own. To make having friends the most important thing. To care so much about what other people think that you forget to care about what GOD thinks. Other people can't see what is inside of you. And honestly, most of us are too wrapped up in popular opinion to show them anything but what we think they want to see, and to blame ourselves, to hate ourselves, when we don't measure up to their level of value.

That's why the only place Value truly lies in is what God Says. How HE views us. Where the TRUTH really lies. And the truth is...

You are VALUABLE, not because of what you look like, not because of what you have done, not because of what the world thinks of you, because those things will change. Your beauty will fade, your achievments, they won't last, popular opinion, it varies with culture, it changes over time. You are VALUABLE because you are GOD's MASTERPIECE.

Genesis 1:27a- "God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created them...

Psalm 139:14- "I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made."

Romans 5:8- "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

Ephesians 2:10- "For we are God's masterpiece, HE has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago."

And my favorite:

Zephaniah 3:17- "The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. HE WILL TAKE GREAT DELIGHT IN YOU, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.

Thank You for Reading,
Esther