WHAT'S YOUR WORTH?

"What is man that you are mindful of him,
the son of man that you care for him?
You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings
and crowned him with glory and honor." — Psalm 8:45

Did you know that there is a website called humansforsale.com? Based on your answers to questions concerning criteria such as your athletic ability, education, income level, the amount of exercise you do each week, how much you weigh, what you look like, and your sense of humor, this site will come up with a dollar amount that you are worth.

While this site is definitely tongue-in-cheek and not meant to be taken seriously, it does raise an important question: How much do you think you are worth? And what criteria would you use to determine your worth? Criteria such as the website uses — income level or education, where you live? Is it dependent on your physical attributes — how you look, how much you weigh, how athletic (or not) you are? Or is it dependent on what others think of you?

If we're honest, too often we do assess our own worth on those very standards. And we assess others according to the same benchmarks. Is it no wonder that many of us walk around with self-esteem issues?

Thankfully, King David offers us another yardstick upon which to measure our worth — God's! Here we read God's measure of humans — He has made us "a little lower than heavenly beings." He has crowned us "with glory and honor." And to make sure we understand how He views us, God has entrusted us with His very Creation, putting us in charge of everything. Truly, we are highly valued in God's eyes.

So how do we respond to such regard? David reacted with humility: "what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?" When we compare ourselves with God and His majesty, we understand the respect and honor due God and acknowledge that our value and worth come from Him.

As we understand that we have great worth because we have been created in God's image, we, then, will see others in the same light. We will recognize that just as we are worth much to God, so is our neighbor, our co-worker, our family member — and we need to treat them accordingly.

We don't need a survey, a degree, a bank account, or the opinion of someone else to determine our value. God knows how much you are worth.

With prayers for shalom, peace,

Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein