A $71.2 Million Diamond
Friday, October 13, 2023
“The person who declares that Christianity makes men miserable is himself an utter stranger to it.” – C.H. Spurgeon
What is the most precious commodity in the world? If we’re talking gemstones, the most valuable one is the blue diamond, which contains boron and goes for almost $4 million per carat. The 14.62 carat Oppenheimer blue diamond sold at Christie’s auction house in 2016 for $57.5 million.
Next comes pink diamonds, valued at $1.5 million per carat. The most expensive one ever sold weighed 59.6 carats and went for $71.2 million in 2017. Red diamonds are usually priced at $1.3 million per carat but the Moussaieff red diamond, a 5.11 carat stone, is valued at $20 million.
Don’t care for diamonds? How about emeralds, which are valued at $2 million per carat? They are most frequently found in Columbia, Zambia, and Brazil and can sell for as much as $5.51 million, which was the winning bid for the 18-carat Rockefeller emerald in 2017.
But do you know what I value more than those precious jewels? First, my salvation, which was the “indescribable gift” God gave me back in 1977 (see 2 Corinthians 9:15). Next comes my wife, children, and grandchildren, all of whom are absolutely priceless. To me, Deanna is more beautiful than a finely set diamond, and my kids and grandkids are gorgeous and exquisite in their own right. Then comes my friends – some of whom I have known, loved, and cherished for decades – followed by my ministry, my country, my health, our home, and yes, even our two dogs.
Do you know what else I put a high price tag on? A clear conscience! I try my best to keep a short sin account, which means that I confess my sins in “real time.” Doing so allows me to lay my head on the pillow at night and drift off to sleep like a baby.
Like Charles Spurgeon said in today’s quote, if you meet someone who is miserable, rest assured that they don’t know Jesus… and the hope, joy, and peace that comes from knowing that your sins are forgiven and that you are on your way to heaven.
Walking with Jesus today and every day will leave you smiling from ear to ear.
“A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.” Proverbs 25:11 (BSB)
- Rev. Dale M. Glading, President
