This is an excerpt of "The Things of Earth" that i found helpful in evaluating whether we are rightly placing value and God and his gifts. - To value things according to their value

Do we value all things - whether wife or food or God - equally? ... Theologians and philosophers call this the principle of proportionate regard. Put simply, it means that we should value, esteem, and regard things in proportion to their value, nature and worth...

We all recognize that something is amiss if a man neglects his wife in order to play golf all the time. Or if a mother considers the cleanliness of her kitchen of more importance than the health and happiness of her children. We correct children who value their toys more than their siblings. Jesus himself endorses this principle when he asks, "Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows." (Matthew 10:29-31) All of us operate in terms of a scale of values, however vague and imprecise they may be. People are more important that property. Family is more important than hobbies. And, if we are seeking to be faithful to Scripture, God is more important that everything else.

Jonathan Edwards articulates this principle as clearly as anyone has: "To determine, then, what proportion of regard is to be allotted to the Creator, and all his creatures taken together, both must be as it were put in balance; the Supreme Being, with all in him that is great, considerable, and excellent, is to be estimated and compared with all that is to be found in the whole creation: and according as the former is found to outweigh, in such proportion is he to have a greater share of regard."

... Piper concurs with Edwards on this point and restates it in this way: "Some truths are worth a little bit of emotion like, 'We are going to have one amazing meal in a minute!' That's worth a little emotion. That 'God rules over your life and loves you and gave his Son to die for you and will take you into his everlasting fellowship forever and ever,' is worth then thousand times more emotion than what this meal will produce for us.

Interestingly, along this stream of thought, it would also be a very natural thing to let the value of the gift direct you to the value of the Giver. If it doesn't, then it is quite a high possibility that you are attributing more value to creation than its Creator. After all, the purpose of a gift is not just about the gift itself, but it is about strengthening the relationship between the giver and the receiver. It is the way the giver shows love towards the receiver. May we not be ungrateful (: