The Appraisal!

It’s time for our house to be appraised. As the appraiser begins to walk through our house, he will be looking at the things he can see: the size of the rooms, the floors, the cabinets, the countertops, the fireplace, the windows, the basement, the number of bathrooms and the upgrades. He will assign a value based on the facts – on what he sees.

But what he won’t see is the sweet memories of many holiday dinners, the smell of cologne at homecomings and proms, the excitement of welcoming home the college students for the summer, the laughter of bridesmaids addressing envelopes, the first steps of a toddler across the family room, the tears of grief, and the heartache and laughter of eighteen years of life lived inside these walls and under this roof.

Who can measure or place a value on the heart of a home? It is precious only to those who have lived here. The man who assigns worth to our house will only look at what can be measured in the marketplace.

This is much like how the world assigns worth to people — by what can be seen or measured: bank accounts, quotas reached or surpassed, movies made, books published, the number of friends on social media, the number on the scales or how few gray hairs are on our heads.

But God looks at the heart. He looks at what’s inside the package. He looks at who we are, not what we have, or even what we’ve accomplished.

“The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” – 1 Samuel 17:7 NIV

And it is God, not other people who determines our true worth.

“Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.” – Matthew 10:29-30 NIV

God has not only set your worth He has also paid the price to purchase you.

“For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.” – 1 Peter 1:18-19 NIV

You are worth more than you can imagine: you are worth dying for; you are worth the very blood of Jesus.

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” – Romans 5:8 NIV

Jesus didn’t wait for you to add in all the upgrades, clean up your act or become successful; He died for you just as you are, in your brokenness and sin. That is how much you are worth to God.

Who are you allowing to establish your worth? God? Or the world? How would it change the way you live your life today if you appraised your life the way God does?