The Maker’s Mark

G e n e s i s 1 : 2 7 

So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. (NLT)

When it comes to quality gear like saddles, spurs, buckles, and bits, all of these have one thing in common: they all have a maker’s mark. What is a maker’s mark? It’s most commonly the maker’s name, brand, or logo that is stamped somewhere on their gear. This is done to show that they are the ones who made the gear and that they are proud of what they’ve made.

This maker’s mark is especially important to cowboys, because in a lot of cases who made the gear is what gives it its value. For example, if you have a bit or pair of spurs with the name Klapper stamped on them, you have something that is fairly valuable. Why? Because the man who made them is none other than the world-renowned bit and spur maker, Billy Klapper. If you have anything made of rawhide by Luis Ortega, you have  something made by  a master. Luis’s mark is the style in which he braids. It’s often referred to as California tradition, and if you know what you’re looking for, you can spot his mark from a mile away. The other interesting thing about having gear made by a master is that, in many cases, it doesn’t matter what condition the gear is in; it still holds its value when it’s made by a master maker. In other words, heavily used gear can still be priceless if it has a maker’s mark from a master in the craft.

If we were being honest, I think we’d all have to admit that we often try to find our value in the things of this world. Things like how well we do our job; how broke our horse is; if we’re married, single, or dating. Or maybe we try to find our value in how well our kids perform in sports, how much money we have, or even how many likes we got on our last social media post. I know for me, I can often search for my value in how many people listen to my talks online, how cool people think my photos are, or how many books I’ve sold. Well, if you haven’t figured it out yet, this is a miserable way to live. Why? Because the world we live in is so fickle—finding our value in what we have, what we’ve accomplished, or what people think about us is so unstable. This is why it’s important to find our value in the one who made us. Who am I speaking of? I’m talking about the Divine Maker, the Master Craftsman of Mankind, the World-Renowned Creator of all things,—GOD ALMIGHTY.

You may be thinking, “Where’s my Maker’s mark? Is it that birthmark on my butt?” No, it’s not. And please don’t ever mention that birthmark on your butt again. The answer is . . . YOU. You are the Maker’s mark. Don’t miss this! Because we were created in the image of God, because we have a soul—because He’s made every one of us unique and one of a kind—we are our Maker’s mark! Every human to walk the face of this earth is given the mark of our Maker at conception, and, because of this, we are our Maker’s most valuable creation.

How do I know? Because God showed us that we are worth more than life itself. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son, that whosoever believes in him, shall not perish but have eternal life.” Did you hear how much He loves you and me? God loved us so much that He allowed His one and only Son, Jesus, to be crucified for our sin. That’s how much God values us. And guess what? He didn’t do that for anything else He created, just for us! You may be reading this and thinking, “Surely God loves those church-going, good people who don’t cuss or chew, or date girls who do, more than He loves me. And surely I have to do something to deserve His mark.” Well, if you’re thinking this, you’re thinking is wrong. God placed His worth on us before we ever deserved it. Romans 5:8 says, “But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners” (NLT). This verse tells us that even though we were scarred with sin, used and abused, God saw worth in what He made and proved it by paying the ultimate price—the death of His Son. And unlike the things of this world, when it comes to our value in God’s eyes, our value never changes. Despite what we’ve done or not done, despite how well we’ve performed or not performed, God’s love for you has never changed and never will.

But there’s a catch. I know, I know, you’re thinking, “Crap . . . I knew there had to be a catch!” Well, it’s not what you’re thinking. The catch is that to really under- stand our worth, we must place our trust in our Maker’s Son (i.e. Jesus). John 1:12 says, “But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God” (NLT).

See, although our worth was settled on the cross, God gives us a choice to believe in Him and accept His gift of eternal life. How do we accept this gift? We give our lives to Jesus. It’s only in doing this that we will ever truly find our true worth and personally know our Maker.

C H E W  O N  T H I S 

What do you find yourself trying to find your worth in? How have you let people or things determine your value? Do you feel worthless and beat up today? Why or why not? Have you given your life to Jesus?

P R A Y E R 

Dear Jesus, I’m tired of trying to find my worth in this world. Forgive me for looking anywhere else but you to find my value. I’m accepting your gift of salvation and giving you ownership of my life. Thank you for making me and paying the ultimate price so that I could be saved.