Observation

“I value all things now only by the price they shall gain in eternity,” said John Wesley. What helped him was determining how an item, action or relationship would be valued in heaven—that’s what gave it its value; that’s how he determined its true price.

Here Jeremiah says, “how the gold has lost its luster.” In many world economies, when trust in the national currency goes down, the price of gold goes up. This is because when the value of stocks and cash decrease, people tend to purchase commodities that retain their value—and gold has done this reliably over many centuries. Gold supplies decrease, and the price of gold increases. Conversely, when cash and stocks retain their value, the price of gold goes down.

The same is true of God. When we place our trust in the things that the world offers, God’s value in our hearts and minds decreases. But when our confidence in the world decreases, God’s value in our lives increases.

Application

God tells us that we must choose between God and wealth. Jesus says in Matthew 6:24: “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” If we choose to place our confidence in our retirement portfolio, its value will fluctuate with our worldly confidence. But if we place our confidence in God and in his Son Jesus, we have a reliable standard against which true value can be determined, for “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Heb 13:8).

When God is the standard by which everything is valued, we will find stability no matter what the current financial climate: bullish or bearish, our trust in God remains the same, for he is the one who determines true value. And when God determines the value of everything, the price tags are rearranged so that people, relationships and actions are valued correctly.

Prayer

Father, John Wesley was absolutely right: I must be certain that what I value has true value in heaven. You never change. Your Word is true. May I always choose correctly, focus my attention and place my trust in what really matters.