Treasures
I just had to share this with y'all :-)
The Necklace.
The cheerful little girl with bouncy golden curls was almost five.
Waiting with her mother at the checkout stand, she saw them, a circle of glistening white pearls in a pink foil box.
"Oh mommy please. Mommy. Can I have them? Please, Mommy. Please?"
Quickly the mother checked the back of the little foil box and then looked back into the pleading blue eyes of her little girl's upturned face.
"A dollar ninety-five. That's almost $2.00. If you really want them, I'll think of some extra chores for you and in no time you can save enough money to buy them for yourself. Your birthday is only a week away and you might get another crisp dollar bill from grandma."
As soon as Jenny got home, she emptied her penny bank and counted out 17 pennies. After dinner, she did more then her share of chores and she went to the neighbors and asked them if she could pick dandelions for ten cents. On her birthday, grandma did give her another new dollar bill and at last she had enough money to buy the necklace.
Jenny loved her pearls. They made her feel dressed up and grown up. She wore them everywhere. Sunday-school, kindergarten, even to bed. The only time she took them off was when she went swimming or had a bubble bath. Mother said if they got wet, they might turn her neck green.
Jenny had a very loving daddy and every night when she was ready for bed, he would stop whatever he was doing and come upstairs to read her a story. One night as he finished the story, he asked Jenny: "Do you love me?"
"Oh yes, daddy. You know that I love you."
"Then give me your pearls."
"Oh, daddy, not my pearls. But you can have Princess, the white horse from my collection, the one with the pink tail. Remember, daddy? The one you gave me. She's my very favorite."
"That's okay, honey. Daddy loves you. Good night". And he brushed her cheek with a kiss.
About a week later, after the story time, Jenny's dad asked again: "Do you love me?"
"Daddy, you know I love you."
"Then give me your pearls."
"Oh daddy, not my pearls. But you can have my baby doll. The brand new one I got for my birthday. She is beautiful and you can have the yellow blanket that matches her sleeper."
"That's okay. Sleep well. God bless you little one. Daddy loves you." And as always, he brushed her cheek with a gentle kiss.
A few nights later when her daddy came in, Jenny was sitting on her bed with her legs crossed indian style. As he came close, he noticed her chin was trembling and one silent tear rolled down her cheek.
"What is it, Jenny? What's the matter?"
Jenny didn't say anything but lifter her little hand up to her daddy. And when she opened it, there was her little pearl necklace. With a little quiver, she finally said: "Here daddy, this is for you."
With tears gathering in his own eyes, Jenny's dad reached out with one hand to take the dime-store necklace, and with the other hand he reached into his pocket and pulled out a blue velvet case with a strand of genuine pearls and gave them to Jenny.
He had them all the time. He was just waiting for her to give up the dime-store stuff so he could give her the genuine treasure.
So it is with our Heavenly Father. He is waiting for us to give up the cheap things in our lives so that he can give us the beautiful treasures. God will never take away something without giving you something better in it's place.
James 1:17
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.
The Necklace.
The cheerful little girl with bouncy golden curls was almost five.
Waiting with her mother at the checkout stand, she saw them, a circle of glistening white pearls in a pink foil box.
"Oh mommy please. Mommy. Can I have them? Please, Mommy. Please?"
Quickly the mother checked the back of the little foil box and then looked back into the pleading blue eyes of her little girl's upturned face.
"A dollar ninety-five. That's almost $2.00. If you really want them, I'll think of some extra chores for you and in no time you can save enough money to buy them for yourself. Your birthday is only a week away and you might get another crisp dollar bill from grandma."
As soon as Jenny got home, she emptied her penny bank and counted out 17 pennies. After dinner, she did more then her share of chores and she went to the neighbors and asked them if she could pick dandelions for ten cents. On her birthday, grandma did give her another new dollar bill and at last she had enough money to buy the necklace.
Jenny loved her pearls. They made her feel dressed up and grown up. She wore them everywhere. Sunday-school, kindergarten, even to bed. The only time she took them off was when she went swimming or had a bubble bath. Mother said if they got wet, they might turn her neck green.
Jenny had a very loving daddy and every night when she was ready for bed, he would stop whatever he was doing and come upstairs to read her a story. One night as he finished the story, he asked Jenny: "Do you love me?"
"Oh yes, daddy. You know that I love you."
"Then give me your pearls."
"Oh, daddy, not my pearls. But you can have Princess, the white horse from my collection, the one with the pink tail. Remember, daddy? The one you gave me. She's my very favorite."
"That's okay, honey. Daddy loves you. Good night". And he brushed her cheek with a kiss.
About a week later, after the story time, Jenny's dad asked again: "Do you love me?"
"Daddy, you know I love you."
"Then give me your pearls."
"Oh daddy, not my pearls. But you can have my baby doll. The brand new one I got for my birthday. She is beautiful and you can have the yellow blanket that matches her sleeper."
"That's okay. Sleep well. God bless you little one. Daddy loves you." And as always, he brushed her cheek with a gentle kiss.
A few nights later when her daddy came in, Jenny was sitting on her bed with her legs crossed indian style. As he came close, he noticed her chin was trembling and one silent tear rolled down her cheek.
"What is it, Jenny? What's the matter?"
Jenny didn't say anything but lifter her little hand up to her daddy. And when she opened it, there was her little pearl necklace. With a little quiver, she finally said: "Here daddy, this is for you."
With tears gathering in his own eyes, Jenny's dad reached out with one hand to take the dime-store necklace, and with the other hand he reached into his pocket and pulled out a blue velvet case with a strand of genuine pearls and gave them to Jenny.He had them all the time. He was just waiting for her to give up the dime-store stuff so he could give her the genuine treasure.
So it is with our Heavenly Father. He is waiting for us to give up the cheap things in our lives so that he can give us the beautiful treasures. God will never take away something without giving you something better in it's place.
James 1:17
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.
19 Comments:
That is a great story. We're so reluctant to trust that He delights in our happiness. We can't really value the real pearls, though, until we work on gaining an eternal perspective. And who's got time for that! ;)
I adore this story! I told this story when I had to do children's church one Sunday morning. They were rapt and so were the adults.
Dearest lieve zus Corry!
Thank you so much for this very beautiful story :)
That was a beautiful story Corrie - I can hardly type through the veil of tears..
Hope all is well there with you.
Lenise,
Sad but true. We don't take the time because all these earthly matters and problems, the dime-store stuff, seem so much more important. Or is it a matter of where we place our value? :-)
Ecclesiastes 1:14
I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and indeed, all is vanity and grasping for the wind.
Gina,
I can imagine! I first read this story about 2 weeks ago and it went straight to my heart. I just had to share it :-)
Audrey,
Lieve zus, you are more then welcome and the "thanks" go to Amber, who shared it with me, and she got it from someone from church:-)
Have a great and blessed day. Jesus loves you!!!
Barbara,
It touched me as well, reading it. Feel free to copy and share it. We can not be reminded enough of God's love, mercy and grace :-)
Doing fine here, rejoycing in God's blessings and provisions. How are you doing all the way over there? hehe.
God's Grace.
Thanks for this lovely story Corry. Our God is a great Father!
Kitty,
Amen!
How are you girl?
God's Grace.
Hi Corry! No need for any concern, I had to smile. The reason I don't put pictures of her face is because she's just a bub and I'm taking precautions on the web,no other reason than that. Thanks for your concerns though! : )
What, and give up my green neck...?!
heehee
Corry, that story hits the target, dead center.
Amanda,
Thanks, that takes a load of me and I can completely understand your reasoning.
She is so cute!:-)
God's Grace.
Haha, Karen. Yeah who wouldn't want a green neck?!
It did, huh? Whoever wrote this certainly knew what it was all about:-)
God's Grace.
Corry,
I've heard that before, not in a long while though. A timely reminder of God's patience. I love the image of Him loving me enough to be willing to wait until I'm ready to accept what He has for me. I wonder also what I'm clinging to so tightly right now?
Good words my friend!
love and belated Happy Mommy's Day!
Karyn
Karyn,
Maybe some time to yourself is needed in order to find out what it is you are clinging to??? :-)
I hope you had a blessed Mother's Day as well, dear sister.
God's Grace.
Amber is so sweet :)
Jesus loves you too, lieve zus!
Audrey,
I will pass that on to Amber:-)
Have a wonderful weekend, lieve zus:-)
God's Grace.
Hi, Corry -
Sorry it's been so long since I've commented. And you and Kc have been such devoted commenters over at Finding Direction, too, which has brought me great comfort, by the way. And still does . . ..
Very interesting little story that makes me think very much of my little granddaughter here close by, Zoe Elizabeth. She's not quite that age yet (she's 3 1/2), but old enough to love her things and would love having a real pearl necklace.
Thanks. For everything!
Dee,
You are more then welcome and we are grateful we were of some help:-)
I hope you get to see little Zoe much and maybe have her stay for a little while, so my prayers are your foot will heal quickly! I know it's taking it's time but... even that shall pass:-)
I would love to see a pic of your granddaughter sometime :-)
Have a very blessed weekend.
God's Grace.
This is a favorite of mine!
thebeloved,
Hi Colleen, welcome to my blog and thank you for your comment:-)
I can see why it's your favorite! It's so touching and so true. A reminder we all can use from time to time:-)
God's Grace.
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