What would you do if you found gold in your backyard? How would you spend your money from that gold? Eva’s father found gold in their backyard, but Eva also found that there is something that is worth more than gold — something that gold cannot buy.
Eva and her family lived in a small village in Bolivia. Like most families who lived there, they were poor. For most of Eva’s life, they lived and worked in a tiny stall in the marketplace where they sold a few vegetables, buttons, pens, and such things. It was noisy, dirty and hot, and they did not have many friends.
A visit from Mr. Albert was always a happy time. He would read the Bible to them or bring them a calendar with Bible verses. He often left a list of verses for Eva and her younger brother to memorize. Even though it was sometimes a whole year before Mr. Albert got back to their village again, he would bring them a prize if they had learned their Bible verses.
One day Eva’s parents had to go on a long trip to the mountains. Eva and Willy would have to stay behind in their tiny home in the market until their parents returned. They were left there alone to care for the stall.
After their parents had been gone for some time, Willy got sick from an infected tooth. The side of his face was swollen into a lump as big as an orange and he was in great pain. Eva was only 10, but she did her best to care for him and gave him a medicine for pain that they sold in their market stall. She worried when Willy did not get better and she had no one to help her. Both Eva and Willy felt lonely and forsaken. Willy was sick for a week and finished the whole box of medicine for pain. At last their parents returned and took Willy immediately to a doctor. Willy finally got better, but their tender young hearts had an ache inside that never went away even after Willy was well.
Eva’s family moved several times. Although they lived farther in the jungle, they at least had a small house now and did not have to live in the market. Soon it was time for Eva and Willy to go to high school but their father did not have enough money to send them to the town that had a school. One day, however, they heard some surprising news from their neighbors. Some had found gold in their yards! Well, Eva’s father thought, maybe there’s some gold in our yard too.
So he dug a hole in the back yard as big as a well and began panning the water that came up. Sure enough there was gold! Gold right in their own backyard! There was not a lot of it and it was only specks like sand that had to be melted down before it could be sold, but it would be enough to send Eva and Willy to high school.
Eva was glad her father had found the gold, but the ache and emptiness in her heart were still there. Even gold could not take them away. Because of the gold, Eva and Willy had enough money to rent a small room of their own in the town where the high school was. God had been tenderly watching Eva and knew about the ache in her young heart. He planned that Eva would find something in this town that would be even better than finding gold.
The town where Eva and Willy went to school was the same town where Mr. Albert lived. When he learned that they were also there, he invited Eva and Willy to Bible meetings in his home. They heard of the wonderful love of God in sending His only Son to die on the cross for sinners. They learned that God who is rich in mercy wanted to give them, not riches of gold, but “the exceeding riches of His grace, in His kindness toward us, through Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:77That in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. (Ephesians 2:7)).
Eva’s lonely heart responded to God’s loving offer of salvation. She believed that the Lord Jesus had died for her sins and that they were now washed away in His precious blood. Willy also received the Lord Jesus as his Saviour. Happy smiles came over their faces as they learned that God’s love and God’s Word, the Bible, would be treasures to them worth more than gold. “The judgments [standards] of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb” (Psalm 19:9,109The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. 10More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. (Psalm 19:9‑10)).
Boys and girls, would you like to have something worth more than gold? It is a treasure that can never be lost or used up, and no one can steal it away. Come to the Lord Jesus for salvation today and begin to enjoy the riches of God’s love. You may have it because the Lord Jesus Christ, “though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that ye through His poverty might be rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9).
The money from Eva’s gold was used up by the time she graduated from high school, but she still had something worth more than gold. She could never lose her salvation. Not long ago she sent a letter saying, “We need your prayers to follow on and to remember in our youth and in all our lives our beloved Saviour.”
Gold can never last. Even if you had lots of it, you would have to leave it behind when you leave this world. Eva’s riches in Jesus can never be lost and they will last forever! Wouldn’t you like to have them too? Trust in the Lord Jesus today and all the riches of God’s grace will be yours.
Oh, yes, oh, yes, there’s something more,
Something more than gold:
To know your sins are all forgiven
Is something more than gold.