The 318 Project
The 318 Project
Priceless: Knowing Your Value
What determines the value of an item?
Does the item have cracks, dents or flaws?
Two people may look at the same object and see the same issues, but while one feels this makes it worthless another may embrace the uniqueness and feel it is worth more than it was originally.
D to you see yourself or feel others see you as "JUNK"?
There are examples in the Bible of men that either felt this way or others felt that way about them.
Judges 6:11-23 - God calls Gideon
1 Samuel 16:1-13 - Samuel anoints David as King
Collecting Baseball card as kid growing up and how the value of cards have changed over the years.
Auctions:
- People bid on items based on the appraised value and what they are willing to pay for it.
- Ebay- people post items they wish to sell and you can either buy the item at the listed price, make an offer for what you feel it is worth, or bid on the item with others, like an auction, to see who wins the item to purchase.
- Sudden Death - a set time limit, no added time or delays to allow other bids to be placed, that the last bid in wins.
Art of Kintsugi:
Dr. Doug Stringer wrote and article about the "Art of Kintsugi". He explains that in Japan when someone breaks a cup or dish, they don't throw it away but take it to a craftsman that repairs the broken item. The art of Kintsugi is to use gold or silver to fill in the cracks. Over time the item may be repaired several times and have a very unique design that makes it more valuable now that when it was originally created.
"The Art of Kintsugi is the ability to see value in brokenness." - Dr. Doug Stringer
Sudden death moment when Satan thought he had Jesus and mankind defeated when Jesus went to the Cross; but Jesus had the final maximum bid that Satan couldn't match when He said "IT IS FINISHED!"
Ephesians 2:10 - His Workmanship (Masterpiece)
Music:
Broken Clouds by Tellsonic
https://www.epidemicsound.com/track/46Avw5ERiS/
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Priceless: Knowing Your Value
Think back to a time when you were a young kid and had a toy or something that you enjoyed playing with. Maybe it was an action figure, ball cards, old coins, or just something that you loved to collect. Years later, did you find out that the toy, you once had, was now considered a collectors item and depending on the condition, worth a lot of money?
Do you look at your life and see all the things that you did and now feel like if you had done things differently as a child or young adult then you would feel more valuable?
Well in this episode, I am going to discuss how God used mighty men that felt they had low self worth to overcome obstacles and how you too can overcome feeling depreciated and see your true value, in this episode of the 318 Project.
Hello, I’m Ryan Hare and welcome to the 318 Project.
You have probably heard the saying, “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder”; maybe even “One man’s junk is another man’s treasure”.
So what determines the value of an item?
Many things can go into determining what an item is worth. You may have several people look at the same item and each one may see something different about that item. One person may see a crack or flaw and feel it doesn’t have much value, while another person sees the same issues, but feels the uniqueness of that item gives it more value that it originally was worth.
Most people when they want to know the true value of an item they will take it to an expert that has worked or examined many similar items to give an accurate appraisal of that item.
In a skit called “God’s Chisel” one man is praying in frustration when God appears and talks with him about how He sees him. The gentleman tells God, “I’m junk”. God then responds to him by saying “What does that say about Me? I don’t make junk.”
In Judges ch. 6, we read where the Midianites had oppressed Israel for seven years. At that time God sent the angel of the Lord to Ophrah. There the angel found a young man, Gideon, threshing wheat in a winepress, to hide from the Midianites.
In verses 11-23 you read that the angel tells Gideon that he will be the one to deliver Israel from the hands of the Midianites. Verse 12 reads that the angel said to Gideon, “The Lord is with you, O valiant warrior.” Gideon’s response in verse 15 was, “Please, Lord, how can I deliver Israel? Look, my family is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my father’s family.”
Gideon was basically saying, “I am junk”. Even after he tells the angel “If I have found favor with you, give me a sign that you are speaking with me.” While Gideon saw himself as the runt of his family that he felt was the weakest tribe of the Israelites, God saw a mighty warrior.
Even after God affirmed Gideon, he still had doubts that he even asked God to show him a sign, three times, with the fleece. Through all the doubts of his worth, God used Gideon to deliver Israel from the Midianites and he was a judge over Israel for many years.
God would send the prophet Samuel to anoint David as the King. God instructed Samuel to go to Bethlaham to the house of Jesse and anoint one of his sons to be the next king of Israel. Jesse brought each of his sons before Samuel except David. As each son passed by Samuel, he thought “Certainly the Lord’s anointed one is here before him.”
In I Samuel chapter 16 verse 7, the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance of his stature because I have rejected him. Humans do not see what the Lord sees, for humans see what is visible, but the Lord sees the heart.”
Samuel would then ask Jesse if he had any other sons and had him call for David, who was out in the fields tending the sheep. Jesse didn’t see the worth of David, his own son, to even call him before Samuel. Yet God saw David’s heart and told Samuel to anoint him the moment he saw him.
Going back to the introduction, as a kid, I loved collecting ball cards, especially baseball cards. I would save my allowance and when I was able to, I would ride my bike up to the store and get some packs of cards. Other times, my parents would take me to the card shop close by or even to the occasional card show. I would always look for certain players that I liked or just try to get the cards needed to complete the set.
Over the years my collection grew and as I got older I kept the cards, but didn’t have the interest like I once did. From time to time I would check to see what the value of some of the cards were. Some had increased in value, but most didn’t have much value because the card industry had crashed the market years before and most cards lost their value.
Then about a year ago I saw a video where a collector was looking for a certain card. I was sitting there and thought, “I still have that card and I wonder what it is worth now.” I looked it up and saw that it and many of those cards had value.
The card industry had changed how they produced cards because of what happened years before. They made cards more unique, different variations and even limited numbers.
This created a market where now collectors and card dealers are inflating the prices for many cards, not because of how great the player is or what accomplishments they did in their career, but on the rarity of that specific card.
You have probably seen where they have auctions that allow people to bid on an item. You see sites like Ebay that allow you to bid for an item. Even auction houses will have them to allow people to bid on artwork or other rare and unique things such as painting, sculptures, vehicles, antique items or vintage memorabilia.
During an auction you might see where several people really like the same item and that begins a “bidding war” that raises the value of the item. While the item may have been appraised at one value, now with them bidding, the item may cost two - three times what they thought it was worth because they felt “I have to have it!” During these auctions they will ask, “Are there any more bids?” to allow others to place a higher bid.
They even have auctions now that are called “Sudden Death”. These types are where there is a set time limit that counts down, with no extra time added, and the last bid wins. In these auctions, especially online, you can put in a maximum amount that you are wanting to bid on the item. You may have the high bid and then the next person may add an amount, but if it is lower than your maximum bid, your bid would only go above their bid and not to your max amount. So, you may win an auction for a lower amount than what you were willing to spend and even less than maybe what it is actually valued at.
That is how it is in yours and my life. We may look at what has happened and see scars, pains, heartache and rejection. You may have struggled through an addiction, been divorced, lost a job or something that you feel makes you less valuable.
I recently read an article by Dr. Doug Stringer. He talked about the “Art of Kintsugi”. In Japan, if someone breaks or chips a cup, plate or any other vessel, they don’t throw it away. Instead, they will take the broken or chipped pieces to a craftsman for repair. The craftsman will use the art of Kintsugi and repair the damaged item by using gold or silver to fill in the cracks. Over time, an item may have several cracks, but with each repair, its value increases. With the brokenness, the vessel has greater value than before if it had never been damaged. Doug states that, “The art of Kintsugi is the ability to see value in brokenness.”
In our brokenness, of sin and shame, God paid the greatest cost when His Son, Jesus, as the perfect sacrifice, went to the cross and allowed Himself to be broken.
God sees the value in you and me. And when Jesus went to the cross and gave His life for each of us, He gave us a Priceless value in His Kingdom.
It was in that “Sudden Death” moment that is when Satan thought he had Jesus and mankind defeated.
Jesus and Satan saw a value in mankind, but Jesus had a far greater maximum bid that Satan couldn’t match when He went to the cross and said “IT IS FINISHED!” He had the highest bid no matter what Satan tries to offer you or tell you that you are worth.
As Ephesians 2:10 says with emphasis added, You are His PRICELESS Workmanship (Masterpiece)!
Take the time to reflect about how God sees you and not just about how you or others see you, because many times we undervalue our true worth. If you still feel that you are junk then go to God in prayer and ask Him to let you see yourself as He sees you. Priceless!
So I want to thank you for listening to this episode of the 318 Project. Be sure to like, subscribe and share this with others, and as always I want you to have a blessed and wonderful day.