Poor Pluto. First, it’s a planet and then it’s not anymore. It has become the Rodney Dangerfield of our solar system. In an award-winning move that probably did not make the “sub planet” feel better, the term “plutoed” was declared the Word of the Year by the American Dialect Society in Anaheim, California, a little over a decade ago. The word means “to demote or devalue someone or something.”
Do you ever feel “plutoed”? Do you feel like people don’t appreciate you like they should? You may get that feeling on the job, when you’re working harder than anyone else and somebody else gets the credit, the promotion, and the attention. You may get that feeling in your marriage or in the home, whether you’re the husband, wife, parents, or children. You may even sometimes feel “plutoed” by the church. Maybe you feel that your difficulties or problems are being ignored. You might think your contributions or ideas are not taken seriously enough. I’m sure elders, deacons, preachers, Bible class teachers, their spouses, along with everyone else, has to deal with that “plutoed” feeling periodically.
Will you remember a few things? First, remember the value God placed on your soul by sending Jesus to die to save it (Galatians 2:20). Second, remember that God’s system of rewarding is on His time and His terms, but He will not let faithful service go unnoticed or unblessed (Matthew 6:4, 6, 16). Third, remember that you are valuable because of who you are, a child of God (1 Peter 2:5, 9; Revelation 1:5-6). Finally, remember your obligation to help everyone around you feel valued. Afterall, isn’t that the way you prefer to be treated? (Luke 6:31). It’s the Christ-like way (Acts 10:38). There are plenty of people around you who are sorely in need of being “de-plutoed,” even as God has uniquely equipped you for the task (1 Corinthians 12:8-12).
Experience the value that God has attributed to you by showing it to all those for whom Christ died.
“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20).
“For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect” (1 Peter 1:18-19).
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Adapted from Neal Pollard’s “Preacherpollard’s Blog,” January 22, 2018; < https://preacherpollard.com/2018/01/22/do-you-feel-plutoed/ >.