THE NEW EWE

"What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!'"

Luke 15:4-6

September 13, 2023

LIFE IN THE FOLD

A saying I heard growing up, if something was worthless or useless or had little value, was, "It's not worth a plugged nickel."

I was curious where that saying originated from, so looked it up. It refers to coins that were "plugged". A hole was drilled in their center and they were filled with cheaper metals. This made the coins worthless and of no value if they were found. The saying originated in the late 1800's to early 1900's sometime.

A simple example is, if you pick up an ink pen and it won't write, you could say, "This pen isn't worth a plugged nickel!" Suppose you buy an electric tool at a yard sale and get it home to find that it doesn't work, you could say that it's worth a plugged nickel.

Another old saying that I've heard is, "He's not worth a hill of beans!" (or she) That meant that they were lazy or shiftless, undependable, seen as being worthless or good-for-nothing.

Years ago, beans were fairly easy to grow and were commonly used, so were seen as not having a lot of value. An older saying, "not worth a bean," appeared as far back as 1297, when historian Robert of Gloucester wrote it in his English Chronicles. The American saying, "not worth a hill of beans," begin to appear around 1863. This saying is not only used to refer to a person, but also to other things that have little value or having little or no importance.

For example, many years ago I knew of a family who never worked. I never knew them to ever have a job or bring in any income of any kind. They lived on welfare and food stamps and at one time moved into an old abandoned shack that had no electric, water... and I doubt that it had all the windows, if it even had any at all. They would drink, steal, and had numerous children taken away from them. They always had an old vehicle to drive, but I don't have any idea where they got it. I grew up hearing stories of when the woman was younger, she would lay down in the middle of the road and her brothers hide in the ditches. When a car would stop, to keep from running over her, the brothers would rob them. That is just one of many different stories told about this particular family. I heard the phrase, "Not worth a plug nickel," or "Not worth a hill of beans," when people were referring to them.

That story is a little on the extreme side of someone who may be seen as worthless or lazy, but I believe that I would be safe to say that each of us could think of someone or a family that we have known or known of who seem to fit that description of not being worth a plug nickel or a hill of beans.

The truth is, sometimes individuals view themselves in such a way. They may not use those particular phrases when speaking or thinking about themselves, but that's really how they feel. Perhaps they think of themselves as being ugly or unattractive, fat, unpopular, untalented, having nothing of value to offer, unloved, disliked, etc. Perhaps they carry around guilt, shame, condemnation, and/or embarrassment over something from their past. They may have had hurtful words spoken to them that planted that seed that they were "less than" someone else. They carry something in their heart and listen to that little lying voice in their mind that prevents them from truly seeing themselves as God sees them.

I spent many years thinking of myself in negative terms. Sitting in a high school class and having students discuss how a person could lose weight and get into shape, while staring at you, is a pretty obvious clue that they were trying to be "helpful" in telling you that this is what you needed to do. Being given a membership to Weight Watchers for a high school graduation present, having someone offer you money if you'll lose weight, someone else buys a rice diet book for you, another person tells you that you will never get married and have a man fall in love with you unless you lose weight...... it all builds and plants seeds and causes a person to lose confidence and feel bad about themselves. I'm not looking for pity... I'm over it and have moved on.... but just using this as a personal example. Seeds that are planted take root and grow, unless they are dug up and thrown away in a place where they can't take root again.

There are times when I still will make a negative comment about myself, but overall, am much better than I used to be. I can control those thoughts without allowing them to take root and vine around my mind. I better see myself as my Father, who created me in my mother's womb, sees me. He formed every part of me from the very beginning and was involved in every tiny detail of making me exactly as He wanted me. There are still changes I need to make and areas where I need to improve, but I know that I have value and worth and purpose. I know that I am loved by God and family and friends. I know that God placed me here on earth for this particular time and that He has a plan for me. I have to choose to walk in obedience to that plan and be willing to trust Jesus and hold fast to faith, or I could get distracted and my focus on the negativity and allow those seeds that Satans tries to plant in my heart and mind take root.

Even though it may have seemed to the community that the people, whom I mentioned earlier, had very little worth or value or purpose, God created them and loved them deeply. He died for their sins and desired that they have relationship with Him, just as He did for me and you and everyone else. I believe that there are times when people rebel and dishonor God and choose to live life their own way and go against His plan for them. When that happens, I believe that it breaks the heart of the Father and He pursues them and tries to show His great love for them. But I don't ever think that God looks at individuals and thinks, "They're not worth a plug nickel or a hill of beans!" He has invested in their life! He was there before they were ever conceived in their mother's womb and He gave them life and formed and shaped them while they were in the womb. God sent His only Son to earth to die for their sins so that they could be saved and live in heaven with Him for all eternity!

I pray that each of you see your value and know your worth. You are worthy of the love of the Father! You are worthy of the love of a spouse, children, family and friends. God is invested in you, and has been before you were ever conceived. Don't look in the mirror and focus on what you see as flaws, but focus on the good qualities that God placed within you. Don't dwell on past failures, because they are under the blood of Jesus, once you repent of them; and that's where they remain. God sees you as beautiful, worthy, a special treasure, gifted, and has a plan for you that only you can fulfill. You are loved!

JON'S PERSPECTIVE:

The book of Jonah tells about God bringing about a transformation in Nineveh. It describes Nineveh as wicked. Other texts go into more detail about just how wicked they were. And yet, God didn't just destroy them. He sent Jonah to them to speak to them.

Because of Jonah, the entire city repented.

This was a city that Jonah would have described as worth less than a plug nickel. Far worse, they brought harm to Israel and other good natured civilizations.

But God didn't want to destroy them without giving them a chance to repent and prove they had more potential than they appeared to have. They were worth much more than that.

ON THE MENEWE:

7 Can Soup

(A quick, easy recipe when you don't have much time to cook on a cool evening!)

Without draining the cans, empty the chili, all the beans, tomatoes, corn (can use Mexican or Fiesta Corn, if desired), and Rotel together in a large pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes to bring all the flavors together. Add in the diced Velveta and stir into the soup until melted. Serve immediately.

THIS, THAT AND THE OTHER:

After graduating high school one of my sisters and I lived together for a couple years. My mom had passed away when I was 15, and my dad remarried during my senior year. I needed a vehicle to drive, once I got a job, but had no way of paying for one. So June, my stepmother, had an old... old car that she let me borrow. She no longer drove it and it was just sitting at her house not being used. It was an old faded white Oldsmobile. The gears were push button -- which I had never seen before. The real piece-de-resistance was the seat covers! June had reupholstered them at some point with a velvet-feeling fabric with big peacocks on it. At times the car wouldn't start. June told me when that happened to just open the hood and peck on the battery cables with a rock and it would start, which it would. One afternoon I was leaving work and the old, bent key broke off in the ignition when I turned it to start. Thankfully, an uncle and my cousin's husband drove by and gave me a ride home. My dad came later and did something to get the old key out of the ignition and had a new key made for me. For an 18 year old, the car was a bit of an embarrassment to drive; but it did get me to where I needed to go. It was a happy, happy day when I was finally able to get my own car!! It was used, but looked nice. It was a big white two-door Chrysler Cordova.

THOUGHT TO PONDER:

God has a plan for your life. The enemy has a plan for your life. Be ready for both.

Be wise enough to know which one to battle and which one to embrace. - TobyMac

OUR HEARTFELT THANKS TO YOU:

We love you!

Loretta & Jon

http://www.graysheep.org