Do You Struggle with Self Esteem and Self Worth?

A lady said to her husband, “There are some things money can’t buy. Don’t bother getting me any of those things.” Well it’s true, money can buy you companions but not friends, and pills but not health. Money can’t buy happiness and it can’t buy what it used to. But it can buy you the most expensive car in the world. And what is it? A vintage Ferrari 250 GTO built back in 1963. It’s one of only 39 ever made. For a mere $52 million, it could be yours. Or maybe you’d prefer some shoes. I know my wife would. How about some Ruby slippers? They’re a replica of Dorothy’s slippers from The Wizard of Oz and they’re encrusted in diamonds. And the cost of the most expensive shoe in the world? $1.5 million for the left one, and the same for the right. Or you could buy 120,000 pairs of running shoes with that money. It’s up to you. The most expensive soup on the planet is available at Kai Mayfair in London England for $190 a bowl. What’s the key ingredient? Shark fins.

But what is a human life worth? Recently Stanford economists calculated the average value of a year of quality human life to be $129,000. But reduced to just the basic components that comprise the human body, we’re worth a paltry $160.

I talked with a man in prison recently. A Christian now, he’s serving a 20-year sentence. He said, “The thing I struggle most with is…well…I have no value.” I smiled and reminded him that our worth is not measured in terms of monetary value but by what our heavenly Father has done for us. By what God paid to ransom and rescue us.

Tears came to his eyes because he knew all about that ransom. Through the death of God’s Son on the cross, the Father paid the price to rescue us from our sin. 1 Peter 1 says, “It was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed…but with the precious blood of Christ.”

If the value of an object is determined by the amount paid for it, you are priceless. Psalm 139 says you are “fearfully and wonderfully made.” And woven throughout the entire story of redemption is this awesome truth: He loved you to death. You are valued and loved far beyond any Ferrari, any ruby slippers, any shark fin soup.