The Worth of a Soul

Sometimes the appearance of someone or something causes us to pass by without a second or even a first thought. The "packaging" doesn't exactly catch our eye. A recent example of this is Susan Boyle; no one gave her much thought until she opened her mouth to sing. And there it was; the treasure of her voice had been revealed. Now her name is a household word. It shouldn't have taken her entering a contest and singing to reveal her beauty, but unfortunately that is our society at times.

I have been thinking about this sort of thing for some time now; in fact long before the Susan Boyle phenomenon. God uses the most unexpected people and events to touch our lives. I have been trying to be more aware of the "God Moments" in my life. To make a more concrete effort in this, I have begun a MEME on my other blog, Blessings For the Day, where I post how I have felt Christ's touch in my life each week. The title of the MEME is The Touch of Our Savior's Hand. It is a variation of a title of a poem I remember reading in highschool; The Touch of the Master's Hand. The poem shows the worth of a soul through the analogy of an old violin being auctioned. No one sees the worth of the instrument until the master musician touches and plays it. God plays the most beautiful music in our lives through various people and circumstances when we let Him. The poem by Myra Brooks Welch follows.

The Touch of the Master's Hand
It was battered and scarred,

And the auctioneer thought it hardly worth his while to waste his time on the old violin,

but he held it up with a smile.
"What am I bid, good people", he cried, "Who starts the bidding for me?"

"One dollar, one dollar, Do I hear two?" "Two dollars, who makes it three?"

"Three dollars once, three dollars twice, going for three,"
But, No, From the room far back a gray bearded man came forward and picked up the bow, Then wiping the dust from the old violin and tightening up the strings,

He played a melody, pure and sweet as sweet as the angel sings.
The music ceased and the auctioneer with a voice that was quiet and low,

Said "What now am I bid for this old violin?"

As he held it aloft with its' bow.
"One thousand, one thousand, Do I hear two?" "Two thousand, Who makes it three?"

"Three thousand once, three thousand twice, Going and gone", said he.
The audience cheered, but some of them cried, "We just don't understand."

"What changed its' worth?" Swift came the reply. "The Touch of the Masters Hand."
And many a man with life out of tune all battered with bourbon and gin is auctioned cheap to a thoughtless crowd much like that old violin
A mess of pottage, a glass of wine, a game and he travels on.

He is going once, he is going twice, he is going and almost gone.
But the Master comes, and the foolish crowd never can quite understand,

The worth of a soul and the change that is wrought By the Touch of the Masters' Hand.

~Myra Brooks Welch

*Please feel free to join me each Friday over at Blessings For the Day and share your God moment with me and others.