When I was a little girl, I adored peeking into my grandmother’s jewelry box and playing with the baubles inside. I can still “see” and “smell” what I considered to be my personal treasure chest.
The black leather box had a top that flipped open as well as several drawers that had delicate silver knobs on either side. Each drawer was lined with red velvet and the smell was like no other.
Since my grandmother didn’t have pierced ears, she had those clip on style earrings. When no one was looking I would take them out and carefully clip them on my ear lobes and pretend that their very existence on my ears made me oh so glamorous.
I’m not so sure she appreciated me trying on her troves of treasure or that pieces would come up missing from time to time. But, if she did mind, she never said. Or maybe she did say, and I don’t remember. Either way, the memory of her jewelry box brings a smile to my face.
As I was driving to work today, a song by Mercy Me called “Dear Younger Me,” came on the radio. I’ve heard it many times before but today a line from the song stood out to me:
“My joy, my pain, would’ve never been my worth”
So here’s a peek inside my brain. As I sang along to those words, “my joy, my pain, would’ve never been my worth,” my soul was arrested with the thought, where are you placing your worth?
As I dug a little deeper into that question, a visual of a treasure chest popped into my brain. This brought me to a paper I had written for a college class about topics I’d like to write about. One of those topics was a story about my grandmother’s jewelry box. And voila! Here we are.
I remember lifting the lid to that jewelry box. I remember the jewels inside that garnered my full attention. I remember the anticipation I felt even though I already knew what was in there. I’m sure my eyes sparkled with the reflection of the treasure I held in my little hands.
But, I grew up. I stopped going to the jewelry box. I was no longer captivated by its contents. The things in there were familiar, dull, and lifeless. Yet it sat there, year after year, unappreciated.
The treasure trove once my place of temporary joy and wonder is now long gone with the passing of my grandmother years ago.
It’s kind of like life, isn’t it? We find things that bring us joy and happiness for a moment and for a while we’re enamored with it. We get the “thing” we wanted or lose the weight, or have the big wedding. We study hard and get the job we wanted so we can buy all the things we think we’d be missing out on if we didn’t have it in our lives.
And yet, there’s still an emptiness.
Once again, things become familiar, dull, and lifeless. So we search for the next shiny treasure that will bring us temporary happiness. It’s easy to kick things and people to the curb when they’ve served their purpose and we have so many other options available.
So the question of where are you putting your worth is not a surface question. It’s a let’s get real with ourselves question of the heart.
Is your worth found in people’s approval? The way you look? The amount of money you make? The material things you’ve collected? You’re job title? Maybe you’re basing your worth on societal standards. Only you know the absolute truth.
There are so many things of this world we consider treasure. But they are all things that will one day fade away. I’m not saying it’s bad to have those things. It’s really only when we put our faith, trust, and worth in them that we can get in trouble.
The harsh reality is, houses burn down, people steal your stuff, companies fold, things and bodies quit working, loved ones die, and accidents happen.
When those unexpected things happen a hard downward spiral begins and you’re faced with the question, “what do I do now“? Sadly, some never make it to the other side of that question because they tied their existence to a thing or a person and their hope was lost.
Having been at the brink of that dark precipice, many times, I get it.
After retiring from a career I held 29 years, it was tough trying to figure out what to do next. My treasure was found in seriously numbing my senses with alcohol.
After years of singleness and dating my treasure was to find the perfect mate.
When marriage got too hard and I felt unloved, unwanted, and not enough. My treasure was found in men who made me feel “loved,” “wanted,” and “enough”.
When menopause hit and I couldn’t lose weight the way I used to, I was beside myself. My treasure was self-loathing and disgust.
When my body betrayed me and I couldn’t work out the way I used to, my treasure became excuses.
When the reflection in the mirror started showing my age in years, my treasure became longings of days gone by.
As if any of this was all there was to life on this earth. In all of that, I was so wrapped up in self, I couldn’t get past myself. I was always in my own way. It mattered not what any good thing anyone said because I bought into the lies that I was not enough based on unattainable societal standards.
I was the picture of smiling on the outside, while slowly dying inside.
I literally could not accept myself because everyone and their life looked better, shinier, happier, healthier, and more complete. My treasure was in the wanting. Have you ever been there? Maybe you’re there now.
Can I just say, if you’re still reading this, you’re story is not over, it’s just a new chapter. It’s not going to look like the rest of your life for a reason. Times change and time most assuredly doesn’t stand still. We’ll either get stuck in what was, or we grab onto what is, and hope for what could be.
I’m not gonna say some of the things that brought me down don’t come back and haunt me, because they do. But now I know better than to latch onto the lies that tell me I’m not enough and sit in my woe is me pot for days on end.
These lies stole years from my well-being. Maybe you as well. If that’s true, I’m so very sorry for all you’ve been through.
But today is a brand new day my friend. It’s full of God’s faithful love, faithfulness, and mercy. (Lamentations 3:22-23) When God says you the apple of His eye, (Psalm 17:8), then you’re the apple of His eye. When He says He takes great delight and is singing over you (Zephaniah 3:20) then take hold of that truth and run with it. When God says He’s got a plan for you (Jeremiah 29:11) then believe it.
Can we just agree that God’s Truth should never be harder to believe than the enemies lies? And yet, here we are, letting the thoughts of the one who only comes to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10) take our thoughts captive. Let me just say he’s not the boss of you, unless you allow it.
The fruits of the spirit are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. (Galations 5:22-23)
Did you see that…self-control. We have that. Plus all those other attributes. But, it’s up to us to exercise them. One last thing on this treasure topic and where we place our worth and then I’m off to seize the day.
Matthew 6:19-21 says:
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (bold emphasis added)
So, let me ask, what’s in your treasure chest?
Blessed to be Broken 
Thanks for the reminder amiga.
Thanks for stopping by amiga! Hugs!
I have some of my mother’s jewelry so my jewelry box looks like your grandmother’s. I have clip on earrings. I’ve never had my ears pierced. I have many treasures in there but no grandchildren nearby to enjoy them. My treasure is in my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
I always thought the clip on’s were fun, but after a while they hurt my ear lobes. But you can’t make pierced earrings even close to what those clip on’s looked like. Thanks for taking the time to read and reply Nancy! Hugs!
Thank you for this awesome reminder and making me really think about where my treasure is. Since diagnosed with stage IV cancer, I’ve been wanting to do everything I can to make a difference for Christ. Is that my treasure? Am I spending too much time doing for Him and not enough time just being with Him? Things I need to ponder and pray about.
Mary Beth, I’m praying for you sweet friend. What a blessing you are to so many!
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