We continue in the series, Enormous Lessons from Small Parables.To set the stage for the parable of this lesson, I want you to think of your most valuable possession. What is your most valued possession? What is it worth in the marketplace? What is it worth to you? The two may not be the same, you know. Have you ever lost the possession?
Whether we realize it or not many of the decisions we make are often based on our values. But what are values? It is a term that gets used a lot but many of us might struggle to define it. Simply put values are our puppet masters. They are core beliefs that underpin and guide our decision making and behaviors. We are often most comfortable, content and without internal conflict when we are able to stick close to our values making the inverse true too. We can feel extremely uncomfortable and unhappy when we are not able to act according to our values. This discomfort can take many forms, from anger to anxiety, and can feel confusing if we’re not aware of where it’s coming from.
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Price is what you pay. Value is what you get.
Warren Buffett
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When we talk about items that are valuable to us, it asks us to define the standard for the value. Our values reflect what is important to us. Values are important because they mold and shape our beliefs and attitudes. Values can influence and can change our behavior.
Do you remember Precious Moments® figurines?
Precious Moments® creator Sam Butcher began drawing the teardrop-eyed children in the early 1970s as gifts for his family and friends. Sam was a man of deep personal faith. Sam and his friend Bill Biel started a small company to produce the art on a line of cards and posters. They called the company Jonathan & David and took their goods to the Christian Booksellers Association Convention in Anaheim. The crowd of bookstore owners was so enthusiastic that representatives from neighboring vendors came over to help them write orders.
[su_pullquote align=”right”]Seven Benefits of Knowing What is Valuable to You
1) Values help you define and understand your purpose.
2) Values directs your behavior in lost and difficult times.
3) Values prompt decisions.
4) Values carve your sense of identity.
5) Values increase your level of confidence.
6) Values sustain hope.
7) Values contribute to happiness and joy.[/su_pullquote]
Before long Sam was approached by the Enesco Corporation to develop a figurine based on his artwork called “Love One Another.” By the end of 1978 the first twenty-one figurines were introduced to the Christian marketplace.
In the beginning many of the figurines became a high demand item for collectors. Their limited availability, combined with their sentimental value, chased prices up the ladder. But as production increased, the same images became available in pewter, plastic and paper representations.
Today we have dozens of the figurines. Some of them are not even worth the money that we paid for them. We keep them not because of their monetary value, but because the figurines represent moments in life. Some remind us of anniversaries or birthdays, some were gifts from important family or friends, and some focus our thoughts upon a special occasion. Some of the figurines that we have were my mother’s. We inherited them after her death.
The figurines will never fund our retirement years. But the figurines remind us of what makes something valuable.
So let’s get back to our questions for this lesson. What is your most valuable possession? Is it valuable in the marketplace, or is it valuable because you have assigned it worth? How deeply would it affect you if it were lost?