Jenny was
a bright-eyed, pretty five-year-old girl. One day
when she and her mother were checking out at the
grocery store, Jenny saw a plastic pearl
necklace priced at $2.50. How she wanted that
necklace, and when she asked her mother if she would
buy it for her, her mother said, "Well, it is a
pretty necklace, but it costs an awful lot of money.
I'll tell you what. I'll buy you the necklace, and
when we get home we can make up a list of chores
that you can do to pay for the necklace. And
don't forget that for your birthday Grandma just
might give you a whole dollar bill, too.
Okay?" Jenny agreed, and her mother
bought the pearl necklace for her.
Jenny worked on
her chores very hard every day, and sure
enough, her grandma gave her a brand new
dollar bill for her birthday. Soon Jenny had paid
off the pearls. How Jenny loved those pearls. She
wore them everywhere-to kindergarten, bed and when
she went out with her mother to run errands. The
only time she didn't wear them was in the shower-her
mother had told her that they would turn her neck
green!
Now Jenny had a
very loving daddy. When Jenny went to bed, he
would get up from his favorite chair every
night and read Jenny her favorite story. One night
when he finished the story, he said, "Jenny, do
you love me?" "Oh yes, Daddy, you know I
love you," the little girl said.
"Well, then, give me your pearls. "Oh!
Daddy, not my pearls!" Jenny said.
"But you can have Rosie, my favorite
doll. Remember her? You gave her to me last
year for my birthday. And you can have her tea party
outfit, too. Okay?" "Oh no, darling,
that's okay." Her father brushed her cheek with
a kiss. "Good night, little one."
A week later, her father
once again asked Jenny after her story,
"Do you love me?" "Oh yes,
Daddy, you know I love you." "Well, then,
give me your pearls." "Oh, Daddy, not my
pearls! But you can have Ribbons, my toy
horse. Do you remember her? She's my favorite.
Her hair is so soft, and you can play with it and
braid it and everything. You can have Ribbons if you
want her, Daddy," the little girl said to her
father. "No, that's okay," her father said
and brushed her cheek again with a kiss. "God
bless you, little one. Sweet dreams."
Several days later, when
Jenny's father came in to read her a story, Jenny
was sitting on her bed and her lip was trembling.
"Here, Daddy," she said, and held out her
hand. She opened it and her beloved pearl
necklace was inside. She let it slip into her
father's hand. With one hand her father held the
plastic pearls and with the other he pulled out of
his pocket a blue velvet box. Inside of the box
were real, genuine, beautiful pearls. He had them
all along. He was waiting for Jenny to give up
the cheap stuff so he could give her the real thing.
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 beautiful treasure.
Isn't God good?
Are you holding onto things which God wants you
to let go of. Are you holding on to
harmful or unnecessary relationships, anger,
habits and activities which you have come so attached
to that it seems impossible to let go. Sometimes
it is so hard to see what is in the other hand but
do believe this one thing...
"God will never take
away something without giving you something better
in its place".
