There are a number of things that I value here on earth. And when I say that I value them, I mean that these things have a place of importance in my life. Such as my wife, son (and of course Melissa, they are one), family and friends, even things like my home, church, car and other things like these. I have placed them in my heart in the order of importance and this defines their value. Now this may sound crass to some of you and you may be thinking, “How could you place a value on Robin?” Oh, please. Think of what you’re saying; how could I not place a value on her? We all have many things we value here on earth, and these things direct us in how we live and what we do. Take for example the series of events that have transpired over the last five months. I am not trying to convince anyone here, but let me tell you this; if Robin and all of you were not in my life when I had my stroke last April, I probably wouldn’t have gone through all that hospital stuff. Now, if you’re thinking, “Oh, sure, everyone goes to the hospital.” I would have to say to you, “Not everyone thinks like you do.”
I am sure that we can all agree that the material things that we value can in no way compare to the value that we place on people. But then again, I am speaking to Christians, to people who have faith. Because if I were to make that statement to some folk, they may argue that saving the whales and the spotted owls were more necessary than saving the unborn. Some folk treat their dogs better than their neighbors. Believe this or not (but I experienced this first hand), I know a person who was upset because some girls, after they were involved in a car accident, bled on the floor of his house. There are some people who have screamed at kids who walked on their lawn! Now, where were their values? Have you ever heard of the mugger who took a life for a pair of tennis shoes, or a name brand jacket? All of these things seem so ludicrous to you and I because we have something that is priceless –faith! And our faith is in God. This faith allows us to know what and where we value things. God is our standard, our compass, that which we base all direction in life. Faith in God is priceless because we have no business placing value on something that is not a part of this creation. Faith is what God uses to make us; it is the same with hope and love. These things are priceless because they are not of this creation and we will never know their full value until we see God. Then He will show just what faith, hope and love meant to us while we were here on earth.