What do you value?

 Last Sunday I visited a Nepali church. It was full of refugees whose lives have been threatened because of what they value. In order to live they all fled their homes.  Even though they all fled for their lives, their values are important enough for them to hold on to, to give up everything they have.  I noticed that the people in this church, they value God so much that they are willing to come gather in a tiny room with so many people that you literally have no personal space. You are sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with the people next to you. In a room that has no chairs, requiring you to sit on the floor for the entire service. Which lasted two hours. They are willing to do that and sit on the floor just to worship God and hear his word. 

  

Have you ever thought about what we Americans really value? Cars? Sports? Movies? Clothes? Sex? Do you really know what you value? Have you ever really looked at peoples’ facebook? The groups or pages that they like? I’ve seen people that come to church on a regular basis, become fans of groups that surprise me. It makes me question their values. I’ll bet that when it comes down to it, if our lives were threatened, then what we truly value will come to the surface whether we like the out come or not. And I’ll bet that, most of the time, God will not even make the list. That is a problem. We definitely take what we have for granted here.  Would you be willing to give up your family and friends for what you value 

  

Do you know what God values? He values all of us above everything that he created. If had to pick between the rest of creation and us, He would pick us every time because He loves us. “God shows His love for us in this that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom 5:8) God values us so much that He gave up his only Son for us. What do you value? Do you value pleasure? Do you value yourself? Do you value electronics? Is your heart valuing what it should be? Think about it. Christ died for you. He died for you because God finds value in you. God values us for who we are, because he made us, but do we really value him? Do you see God as just a means to an end or is He your fulfillment? (Is God a stepping stone for you?) If you value God, do you value him because you might get something nice and shiny from him? Or do you value him because He values you and he sacrificed His son to die on the cross because we are valued so much? How much do you value God? Value God because he has value in you.