Guest Author - Kathryn Free

To raise money for my first trip to Israel I taught a ‘Mystery Jewel’ quilt class. The quilt was beautifully planned and laid out by some ladies from Canada. Each section began with a simple devotion. The first one was titled, ‘We are like Jewels in a Crown.’ As I began my time with God this morning I was immediately convicted about my purpose for sitting down and reading. I found that my purpose had changed from time with God to write and post a devotion. My reading was for finding the verses to write about instead of hearing my Savior. So I pulled this jewels devotion up to post it so I could truly spend time with God.

What I found was His message to my heart. According to Zechariah 9:16, when God saves us we sparkle like jewels in a crown. I do not feel like a jewel this morning. My sparkle has been dimmed by my desire to rush and write a devotion. This prompted me to pray for wisdom and a humble heart to hear. Here is today’s devotion.

My daughter and I traveled to a diamond field in Arkansas one year for vacation. The field was muddy and wet. We quickly went into the field looking for diamonds, bright shinny diamonds. What we found was rocks and mud. In our haste we failed to watch the 15 minute movie that told us what to look for. After about 30 minutes we decided to go back and watch the movie. What we discovered was that diamonds in the rough are big dirty muddy clogs of dirt crusted rock. As we went back into the fields we did begin finding jewels. Once polished by friction and pressure they began to shine and become what we expected.

I began seeing myself as this ‘diamond’ in the rough. God is using this life to polish me so that when others look at me they will see a diamond and not a big dirty muddy clog of dirt crusted rock. In my pride I wanted to write today’s devotion. God wanted me to be humbled so I could look at myself. His Word is truth. We must go before Him with humility. He speaks to each of us through His Word, in fact John 1:1 tells us that ‘in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.’ When I begin to look at His word as a tool instead of Him, then I need to stop are see my heart.

Colossians 1 gives us a clearer picture of this polishing taking place. The Holy Spirit, Jesus, is working is ‘to present us holy in His sight, without blemish and free from accusation.’ We are not only a diamond, but a flawless diamond! As our attitude and heart change we see the dirt crusted rock becoming a true jewel potential. This is accomplished by having the Word implanted into our hearts, by accepting God’s gift of His only begotten Son, Jesus.

What do you see when you look at yourself, your family or those around you? Do you consider the people in your church and think the are too old, too young, too flighty, too serious, too liberal, or too strait-laced. Do you look at your family or friends and think they are too rich, too poor, too argumentative, too wishy-washy. And do you look in the mirror and think too short, too fat, too tall, too skinny, too grey, too old. In short, we are pretty good at seeing the flaws in ourselves and those around us, while we miss the ‘diamonds’ in the rough that God is polishing.

If only we could see ourselves as God sees us ~ by the grace of our Savior! We are not just imperfect pebbles with all our faults: we are diamonds, rubies and emeralds. Let us resolve to, ‘continue in our faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel,’ and determined to treat ourselves and those around us as precious gems. If that’s our attitude now, (as it surely will be on theat day when He comes again!), we will indeed sparkle like Jewels in a crown.

‘Therefore putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls. But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks in his natural face in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he is.’
James 1:21-24