Beautiful Pearls

Jenny was a bright-eyed, pretty five-year-old girl.

One day 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 we can make up a list of chores that you can do to pay for it.

Jenny worked on her chores very hard every day to pay off the pearls she loved so much. She wore them everywhere.

Now Jenny had a very loving daddy, he would read her a bed time story every night.

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 Rosy, my favourite doll. Remember her? You gave her to me last year for my birthday.

“Oh no, darling, that’s okay.” Her father brushed her cheek with a kiss. “Good night, little one.” Every night Daddy would ask her the same question, and get an offer for everything else except the pearls.

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 slipped the pearls 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 the box were real, genuine, beautiful pearls. He had 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 GOD. He is waiting for us to give up the cheap things in our lives so he can give us beautiful treasure.

This makes me think about the things I hold on to and wonder what God wants to give me in their place.