This Story has A Nice Ring To It

“Do you still make jewelry?”, I asked the woman behind the solid wall of glass.

I was at a silver and gold exchange business located in my neighborhood. I had brought in some old jewelry and silverware that had been in a drawer for some time with the intention of selling it.

My overall goal was, if any of it was worth anything, to get some cash or materials for me to use to make a ring to replace the one that I had recently lost.

The ring that I had lost wasn’t expensive or valuable. It was a very simple ring that I had modified and liked to wear. I had recently lost some weight and best I could figure the ring had fallen off and I didn’t even know it!

I found a design for a ring that I liked. It was a simple silver ring with a gold cross. I am an artist and have made jewelry in the past. But, because I don’t have access to the same tools that I would need to do a “lost-wax” ring, I had discussed with a jeweler friend of mine what he would charge me to make the ring.

His price was fair, but higher than I wanted to pay for a ring. So, I decided to sell some items so see what I could come up with for cash or precious metals to make the ring myself.

Most of what I brought in to sell wasn’t worth a whole lot. The two items that did have some value looked like costume jewelry and didn’t appear to be worth anything. It turned out that they were both made of white gold and were incrusted with diamond chips making them valuable.

After I filled out some paperwork, I was handed a check and was just about to leave the shop when I remembered the real reason that I had come to the store.

I also remembered that this woman had told me in the past that she had gone to college to study jewelry making. I thought that I would ask her if she still made jewelry and ask what she would charge to make a ring for me.

“No, I don’t”, she answered me. “I will occasionally do some modifications such as resizing, but nothing other than that. Why do you ask?”

I told her how I had lost my ring and that I wanted to replace it.

“What style were you looking to make?” she asked.

I told her about the simple silver ring with a gold cross that I had seen.

She said to me; “I have one that I might be willing to sell.”

She continued. “Mine is a simple ring with a cross on it. In fact, just this morning I was looking at the ring and thought to myself that I should maybe sell the ring since it is too big for my fingers…would you like me to email you a picture of it?”

I told her “yes”, gave her a business card, and went home.

Later that evening, I received an email from her along with some pictures of the ring we discussed. In the email she stated that she was on the fence about selling it, but because I asked about it, she said she would be willing to part with it.

The ring was simple and, it turns out, was made of silver and the cross was made of gold.

We exchanged a few more emails, including what was the price that she would sell it for, and agreed to meet the next day for a look at the ring to see it would fit me.

The next day, I went to her business, tried on the ring (it fit), and willingly paid her asking price. We both marveled at how the transaction took place.

And the amount of money that I received for the jewelry that I sold her was more than her price for the ring. In fact, I was able to purchase the ring and still give a tithe on the amount that I received in the sale of the jewelry.

It is the simple things, isn’t it, where God seems to shine the best! It is in the extra ordinary requests of my heart that only He knows, when He seems to be the closest.

It is when I need new clothing and someone gives me some for a gift.

It is when I need a hug and someone comes up and gives me one without me asking.

It is when I am desirous of something like chocolate, or steak, or tickets to watch the Minnesota Wild play and someone gives them to me without me asking.

It is when I long to preach and someone calls me up and asks me if I am available.

No, I didn’t need the ring; I have others that I can wear.

But I DID need to be reminded that He does know that I am here…

And for me to know that He hears the desires of my heart.

See, I told you that this story has a nice ring to it.

Blessed be the Lord,
Who daily loads us with benefits,
The God of our salvation! Selah (Psalm 68:19)

Hey, I Made That!

Recently, I was talking with a new acquaintance and we were sharing about each other’s past employment to get to know each other better. We discovered that each of us had worked in both residential and commercial construction during part of our employment history.

He asked me what I used to do in commercial construction and I said that he had probably already seen my work… since most of the projects were very large in nature and easy to make a reference to; knowing that he would know what I was talking about…not meaning to imply that I had built the whole thing by myself!

But when you tell the story of what you did on a large project such as a stadium or amusement park, it is easy to talk about the project as though you were the only person who did all the work!

In fact, if you tell the story enough times, it is easy for others who know you to retell the story as though they too believe that you built the whole thing by yourself!

Yes, I am guilty of sometimes driving past a project that I worked on and saying out loud; “Hey, I made that!”

When you work on large scale commercial construction projects, it takes a team of thousands of workers from many different trades. That is not even including all the people who spent many years planning, designing, and coming up with the finances MANY years before the work was even started.

And oftentimes, when the large-scale project is completed, the final project gets exalted way above the individual who did the work. We see it and exclaim how beautiful (the building, stadium, freeway, amusement park, etc.) is and exclaim to others how magnificent it is; not the one who created it.

So, the work of an individual is easily over looked; especially the one who had the idea in the first place many years before.

I was pondering my conversation with this new acquaintance one morning as I was walking up to the second floor in our house. I looked out the window in the stairway and saw a beautiful sunrise in the east.

Brilliant colors lit up the morning sky in red and gold and blue as the sun was coming forth, breaking the dawn. I stood there saying how beautiful it was.

Wanting to share this with someone else, I called to Cathy to come here so that she could see the sunrise. Cathy also exclaimed how beautiful it was and returned to downstairs with a smile on her face.

When I got upstairs, I realized that I had spoken of how great the sunrise was; not the One who made the sunrise. I had ‘worshipped’ the creation, not the Creator (see Romans 1:25).

A passage from the Bible came to my mind;

“The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display His craftsmanship. Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make Him known.” (Psalm 19:1-2 NLT)

Did you catch that; The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament shows His handiwork.

HIS work was being displayed; HE is the ONE who should have been praised…not the sunrise or the sky. Let’s not get the two mixed up.

He is the One who made everything we see. He is the One who deserves our attention. He is the One who is calling out; “Hey, I made that!”

“This is what the Lord says— your Redeemer and Creator: “I am the Lord, who made all things. I alone stretched out the heavens. Who was with Me when I made the earth?” (Isaiah 44:24 NLT)

 

He is displaying His glory (goodness) for us to get to know Him. He is longing for us to be with Him and it is easy to miss out on Him calling to us as we get excited about the final product.

“But Jesus deserves far more glory than Moses, just as a person who builds a house deserves more praise than the house itself. For every house has a builder, but the one who built everything is God.” (Hebrews 3:3-4 NLT)

So here is my exhortation to you (and me):

“Don’t let the excitement of youth cause you to forget your Creator. Honor Him in your youth before you grow old and say, “Life is not pleasant anymore.” Remember Him before the light of the sun, moon, and stars is dim to your old eyes, and rain clouds continually darken your sky.

Remember Him before your legs—the guards of your house—start to tremble; and before your shoulders—the strong men—stoop. Remember Him before your teeth—your few remaining servants—stop grinding; and before your eyes—the women looking through the windows—see dimly.

Remember Him before the door to life’s opportunities is closed and the sound of work fades. Now you rise at the first chirping of the birds, but then all their sounds will grow faint.

Remember Him before you become fearful of falling and worry about danger in the streets; before your hair turns white like an almond tree in bloom, and you drag along without energy like a dying grasshopper, and the caperberry no longer inspires sexual desire. Remember Him before you near the grave, your everlasting home, when the mourners will weep at your funeral.

Yes, remember your Creator now while you are young, before the silver cord of life snaps and the golden bowl is broken. Don’t wait until the water jar is smashed at the spring and the pulley is broken at the well. For then the dust will return to the earth, and the spirit will return to God who gave it.” (Ecclesiastes 12:1-7 NLT)

Turn today to the One who is calling out to you and me; “Hey, I made that!”

Scripture from The Message (MSG) Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

Scripture from New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Grateful to be Able to Give Thanks

On your mark! Get set! Go! And we are off…to the forty days or so season of potential feasting and eating way too much food, resulting in added pounds to our already overweight bodies and clothing that will no longer fit.

 

Yes, I said “too much food”; such a problem to have when so many had too little food. To you who are reading this in a country where starvation is commonplace, I am truly sorry that we who have so much are not more grateful...

 

I say “potential” because none of us really know what will happen tomorrow. But I know that we are not supposed to worry about what we are going to eat or drink (see Matthew 6:24-34), and therefore I am confidant of the Lord’s provision in my life.

 

But if this season goes like it has for all of the previous years, we will eat way to much, too fast, without really taking time to enjoy or give thanks.

 

So what can we do assuming we will go the route of eating and eating and eating and eating and eating…? My suggestion is twofold:

 

1.) Be more aware of what goes IN to your body. Look before you eat; look, really look, at all of the work that went into the feast you are about to eat. So much effort was put into the breads, meats, salads, beverages, etc. prior to your consumption. Be grateful for eyes that can see…

 

So much detail was put into the decorations on the cookies and candies prior to you grabbing a handful that goes from your hand to your stomach in ten seconds or less, as your eyes spot another dish that your body craves.

 

Take time to linger, to salivate, to ponder as you pick it up; don’t just pop it into your mouth.  Slow down and to give thanks! Be grateful for your nose that can smell…

 

Take time to smell and to feel and to give thanks. Take time to let the beverage or snack or food item roll in your mouth and let it hit the various parts of your tongue that were created to pick up distinctive tastes that are bitter or sweet or savory…

 

Take time to really enjoy the love that was put into EVERY item that you drink or eat; even if someone picked the item up at 7-11 on the way over to the gathering…

 

2.) Be more aware of what goes OUT of your body. Yes, I did say; “OUT”. Relax; I am not being crass or vulgar. Jesus Himself, to make a point, said; “Do you not yet understand that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and is eliminated?” (Matthew 15:17)

 

When I have become more aware of what goes out of me, I have become more aware of several things; all of which have led to me becoming more grateful for what I eat or drink…so bear with me as I expound.

 

I become more grateful as I realize that my internal organs necessary for digestion are functioning to take food from my mouth and eliminate whatever is not useful even after almost six decades of use.

 

This includes my mouth, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, and large intestines, liver, gallbladder, and pancreas…some of which contribute chemicals that aid in the digestion of the food and beverages that I have consumed and process them into nutrients; which the body uses for energy, growth and cell repair needed to survive…and then creates and eliminates what is not useful to my body.  

 

This includes the urinary tract that filters wastes and extra fluid from the bloodstream and removes them from the body. The ureters, bladder, and urethra move urine from the kidneys and store it until releasing it from the body.

 

Grateful for what went in and what went out.

 

Simply put, I have learned to be grateful every time that I void liquids or solids that I am able to eat food and my body works as it was created to work. Grateful that I don’t need a colostomy bag to collect my solid waste or urostomy bags and a catheter to collect my liquids

 

And grateful that I can do this myself privately and that I don’t need assistance to do so.

 

And yes, grateful for even the toilet that is private and works properly and for toilet paper available for the task at hand.

 

So, as you start this season of feasting, stop today and give thanks to the One who made you; no matter what shape or condition you are in…it can always be worse.

 

Stop and give thanks for how He has provided for you…you have it better than you realize; you really do.

 

Stop and GIVE THANKS today with a grateful heart for the many blessings He has given to you today.

HAPPY THANKS GIVING