by Mike Benson

Teri Horton stopped in Dot's Thrift Shop to browse around. During her junket she stumbled across a bright abstract painting and decided that it might make a good gag gift for a disheartened friend. Teri shelled out $5.00 for the 66-inch by 48-inch canvas and then lugged it home.

Teri's friend, Theresa, got a big laugh out of the hideous present, but turned it down because it barely fit through her front door. Teri took it home again, but after a year decided it was taking up too much space and so she offered it to yet another friend who was an art-instructor. The work turned out to be an authentic Jackson Pollock worth millions!

Pollock (1912—1957) was a leader in the American expressionist movement of the 1940's. He employed large canvases and then "painted" by pouring liquid pigment out of a can and dripping color with a brush.

No one knows for sure how the masterpiece ended up at the thrift store. Some think it may have been purchased at an estate sale in Southern California; others believe it may have simply been given away by Pollock's brother following his untimely death. In either case, "Untitled 1948" found its way to the little store near San Bernardino where it sat for years until Teri Horton happened along.

Imagine. A multi-million dollar painting sold for only five bucks. The store owner had no idea what she possessed.

Maybe you've never thought about it before, but like Teri Horton, you have an incredible treasure in your home too. It is bound in genuine calf skin, printed on thin rice paper, and written in black Indian ink. It is the holy (Jeremiah 23:9), inspired (2 Timothy 3:16,17) and infallible (Psalm 19:7) Word of God (Psalm 33:4). Splashed across its pages are the thoughts of the greatest author in the universe.

Dear friend, where is your Bible? Is it lodged in some dusty crevasse of your home? When was the last time you sat down and really dug into Scripture (Acts 17:11)? The Word of God is a valuable find (cf. 2 Kings 23:24)! The Psalmist wrote, "I rejoice at Your word as one who finds great treasure!" (Psalm 119:162).

"How precious is the Book divine, by inspiration giv'n! Bright as a lamp its precepts shine, to guide my soul to heav'n. Holy Book divine! Precious treasure mine! Lamp to my feet and a light to my way to guide me safely home." (L. O. Sanderson).