“When the Last Tree Is Cut Down, the Last Fish Eaten, and the Last Stream Poisoned, You Will Realize That You Cannot Eat Money”
– rough quote of a First Nations proverb
The quote above gives an idea of how warped the values that we tend to live by really are.
Jesus said “That which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.”
One goal of this website is to help show the value of good agricultural practices, to encourage change away from the agricultural practices that have been destroying people and planet. But there’s a more important goal, and that is to show how much God values something that we don’t value enough. That something is people. It’s me. It’s you.
A conversation that I listened to this week opened my eyes to just how important healthy self-worth is:
There are two lies that we are far too prone to believe. The first is that we are worthless or have little value. When we believe this lie, we tend to not care about our future, and lack positive motivation to choose what’s best for our future over what feels good in the moment.
When we think our value comes from our achievements, abilities or physical attributes, we get distorted ideas about the value of ourselves and others.
The value of something may be estimated by how much someone who understands it is willing to pay for it. The Bible tells us that God understands us fully (Psalm 139); and He paid an infinite price for us (1 Peter 1:18,19). If this is true, your value is inestimable. The value of the president flying in airforce one is inestimable. The value of the seemingly hopeless guy in the downtown street gutter is inestimable.
The second lie that we’re prone to believe is that we’re more valuable than someone else. Sure, the set of talents that each person receives makes him or her better at some things. But that doesn’t make anyone more valuable. If value comes from brains, brawn, beauty or talent, then the devil is far more valuable than any of us.
Our value is received by receiving Jesus. He gives every one who receives Him the privilege of being His child (John 1:12). He is able to save anyone who invites Him to work in their life to the fullest extent (Hebrews 7:25). He will “in no wise cast out” anyone who reaches out to Him.
“Behold, what manner of love the Father has bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God…
“Everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, even as He is pure.”
1 John 3:1,3
When we really understand the value that God places on us, it will transform how we value ourselves. It will transform how we value others. It will transform what we think about God. And these transformations of perspective will transform who we are.