The story

Emmanuela and Fred had enough to stand: a clean small flat, two modest jobs, a daughter’s loud laugh, a faithful coffee maker. Still, the home felt empty. They whined often, quit quickly, and forgot what matters: listening, blessing, guarding time together. Evenings were a list of complaints—money, fatigue, neighbors. Cleaning in silence. Late sleep with a glowing screen.

Saturday morning the coffee maker dies. Nothing dramatic, but it snaps. Emmanuela sighs, “We never have anything.” Fred shoots back, “What’s the point?” Their daughter passes with a drawing for them; it gets buried under bills. Later, Emmanuela finds it wrinkled and sits down. A verse comes back from church: “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:21, ESV) Maybe their treasure sat in the wrong place.

That evening she says gently, “What if we stop counting what we don’t have and start naming the value of what we do have?” Fred: “What do we have?” She holds up the drawing: “We have her. And we still have us. That’s worth more than a coffee maker.” He says nothing. She adds, “Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.” (Proverbs 4:23, ESV) “If our heart can’t see value, everything dries up.”

The turn

They try a simple 48-hour reset:
1) 3 value objects: on the table they place three story-markers (the drawing, two bus tickets from the day they met, Emmanuela’s simple ring).
2) 15 minutes face to face: timer on, phones away. Each names one thing they respect in the other today, and one thing they will stop putting down.
3) Quick repair: if a tone snaps, one-sentence apology—no lecture.
4) One value-guarding act: Fred moves the phone alarm out of the bedroom; Emmanuela tapes the drawing to the fridge. What’s visible becomes priority.

Sunday night, their address is the same, but the climate is not. They don’t have more money; they have found a treasure—attention, presence, gratitude. Fred takes Emmanuela’s ring: “I treated it like an object. It’s a promise.”

Everyday truths

Value slips away when we steal it from attention. What we stop seeing, we start treating as nothing.

Complaints build a loss culture; gratitude builds a care culture.

The heart governs the home; if it shuts down, every other effort rings hollow (Pr 4:23).

Showing value means protecting: limit screens, bless out loud, clear the table so faces can meet.

Action plan (7 days)

Nightly (10 min): 1 specific respect + 1 specific thank-you + 1 short prayer.

Twice this week: one visible act of service for the other (no announcement).

Next Sunday: write “what we honor” (3 lines on the fridge): presence, respect, quick repair.

Verse prompt: read Matt 6:21 in the morning; Prov 4:23 at night.

Prayer

“Father, teach us again the value of what You have given. Guard our hearts; turn them toward what matters. Help us bless more than we complain. Amen.”