I know that the first thing that you think of when you think of getting a beautiful strand of pearls might be something like this definition:
pearl
--noun
a smooth, rounded bead formed within the shells of certain mollusks and composed of the mineral aragonite or calcite in a matrix, deposited in concentric layers as a protective coating around an irritating foreign object: valued as a gem when lustrous and finely colored
However, this week, the pearls that the Lord has carefully stranded together and given to me are far more precious than the pearls from an oyster.
pearl
--noun
something precious or choice; the finest example of anything (pearls of wisdom)
There has been so much going on in my life and in the lives of everyone in my family lately that it has seemed, at times, as if we were all in a tailspin. But the Lord has been gently reminding me from almost every way that I turn of these verses:
Matthew 6
25 “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? 28 “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; 29 and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
With my husband recovering from a hip surgery, my sister-in-love undergoing treatment for cancer, my father-in-love being discharged from the hospital and with my recent ruptured disc, it has been very hard lately to keep a tight grasp on the many strands of pearls that the Lord has gifted me with. And yes, when it rains it pours....BUT He is so faithful. And these verses are SO relevant. It's been so amazing to me that God can literally use as many people as He chooses to drill home passages of scripture. I have had at least five unrelated sources remind me of these scriptures in the last few weeks. Like I said, He is faithful. And if you ever forget that He is faithful, just re-read these scriptures.
And while we're talking about pearls, isn't it just like the Lord to use things that can be a source of irritation and turn them into beautiful pearls that we can add to the strands of our hearts? That's how my God operates. He takes the grit that irritates us to no end and He produces precious gems that we can wear for a lifetime...and better yet, for all of eternity.