One day, quite a few years back, I was looking in a jeweller's window and saw a second-hand necklace for sale. It was a gold chain with eight gold keys hanging from it. Three of the keys had a heart attached to their base and the other five had letters which spelt the name JULIE attached to their base. It came straight into my mind that if I bought the necklace and asked the jeweller if he could take the L and the I off two of the keys and replace them both with the letter S then he could rearrange the keys and they would spell JESUS. So I bought the necklace and the jeweller did the rearranging.
Hidden Treasure
I've found a hidden treasure more valuable than gold
much brighter than a diamond - a wonder to behold
Created by a jeweller who loved the world so much
He sent this precious stone to Earth our hardened hearts to touch
This treasure I discovered not on a velvet tray
but in the rags of misery when I began to pray
This shining jewel of beauty from sin and sickness frees us
The jeweller is our Father God - the precious Stone is Jesus
On Monday the terrible tragedy of the tornado took place in America, and on Wednesday the horrific killing of a British soldier in the UK happened. Thursday morning I was thinking of the awful things going on around the world and how it says in the Bible about tribulations in these times such as never have been seen. I thought about how some Christians are being persecuted for their belief and how Christianity is being despised in many countries that once claimed to be Christian. I settled down to read my Bible and opened it to Mark ch. 13. The verse that really stood out to me was v.13 'and you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved.'
Matthew ch. 24 vs.12 - 14 says that 'Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.'
Matthew ch. 24 vs.12 - 14 says that 'Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.'
I thought of how those spoken of in Matthew ch.22 v.1-3 who were invited to the wedding feast of the king's son refused to come, so then , in v. 8-10 the servants were told to go out into the streets and gather all the people they could find, both good and bad, and the necessity for the gospel to be preached to all so that all may have the opportunity to believe in Jesus and be saved, and what a wonderful opportunity the internet has given us to share this gospel in our blogs.
I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, Jesus is the only safe place in this troubled world, and I sing this song to anyone who might read this post and who does not know Him as Lord and Saviour:-
The Wedding Feast
God is calling, God is calling
God is calling everyone
to the wedding, to the wedding
to the wedding of His Son
You're all invited to the feast
to be God's honoured guest
Yes, God is calling everyone
into His Holy rest
The Lord's returning, He's returning, coming in His Father's power
No one knows when He's arriving, it could be this very hour
He's coming for His church on earth, He's coming for His bride
The door is closing to the world - make sure that you're inside
God is saying, God is saying, God is saying to everyone
'Come into my place of safety, purchased by my precious Son
Come drink my wine of holiness, come eat my bread of grace
The Spirit and the bride say 'Come', step in and take your place
The Spirit and the bride say, 'Come!'. And let the one who hears say, 'Come!' Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.' Rev. ch.22 v17
'You will say in that day: 'I will give thanks to thee, O Lord, for though thou wast angry with me, thy anger turned away, and thou didst comfort me. Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation.' With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. And you will say in that day: 'Give thanks to the Lord, call upon His name; make known His deeds among the nations; proclaim that His name is exalted.' Isaiah ch.23 bs.1-4
'You will say in that day: 'I will give thanks to thee, O Lord, for though thou wast angry with me, thy anger turned away, and thou didst comfort me. Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation.' With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. And you will say in that day: 'Give thanks to the Lord, call upon His name; make known His deeds among the nations; proclaim that His name is exalted.' Isaiah ch.23 bs.1-4
31 comments:
Dear Brenda,
A good illustration with the keys. Changing Julie to Jesus is one of those observation skills you have - but have evaded me throughout my life. Yet I can see that "Julie" ends with a "lie" but Jesus is the way, the truth and the life.
An excellent post.
Hi Frank,
Yes you are right. You say that observation skills have evaded you throughout your life and yet you noticed that Julie ends with a 'lie'. I didn't notice that, only that the L and the I were taken out. Jesus is definitely the way, the truth and the life. Thank you for visiting.
Hi Brenda,
I just seen the story about the tragic killing of that soldier last night...So disturbing how the murderer seemed to boast about it!
You really have a gift for putting things together!
You just mentioned your necklace in a comment to me recently...The part about removing the LI(e)...is so very true...The world tries to replace JESUS with a lie many times...even some churches preach a false jesus.
I wear a tiny cross that my husband bought me when our first granddaughter was born. Her birthstone is the ruby......
There is one ruby on each end, one on the top, and two on the bottom and a diamond in the very middle where the cross connects.
You've inspired me to dedicate a deeper meaning to the jewels in my necklace.
To me this represents a ruby for each wound Jesus recieved on each hand and foot, and one for his brow, while the diamond in the center is the water that came from the pierced side...also representing the washing away of our sins through his blood...(pure diamond)
~God bless you, my friend, and have a wonderful weekend~
Hi Lisa,
So true that the lie is everywhere, in the world and inside the church as well if the teaching opposes what the Bible teaches or adds to it. His Word is Truth. How lovely that you see a deeper meaning in your cross. I do not believe that anything is coincidence, what God brings into our lives can so often speak spiritually to us, and if those stones had not been rubies they could not have represented the blood. God bless you and you too have a wonderful weekend with your family and the Lord's gift of perfect health
Hi Brenda,
World news seems to be getting bleaker and bleaker as we move through this year. With the increase of murders and natural disasters I am urged to share the Gospel and step out on a limb for Jesus because I know the time is short, He will be returning soon and we have much work to do.
Be ready and on guard for we do not want to be like the virgins that didn't have enough oil and went to get some and missed their Lord.
Blessings sister,
<><
Hi child of God,
that's true, it is very important to share the Gospel. I nearly put the scripture in my post about the ten virgins and the oil but thought it might be too much. It is good that it has come in your comment. God bless you.
Dear Brenda,
What a lovely analogy with the keys, and of how the Holy Spirit has guided you to transform a worldly necklace to a symbol of spiritual truth. I too believe that we must be very close to His return, and pray that we will be ready, faithful and serving Him when He comes. Thank you for the beautiful post, and God bless,
Laurie
Hi Laurie,
I believe, as I know you and many other brothers and sisters do, that the Lord has fashioned each of our lives in Him for His purpose and His glory. I am always amazed at the different ministries all around the world and how the Internet allows us to share the Gospel and also interact with other Christians. I have much to learn about the Internet but I shall find out what I need to know as the Lord leads me. Enjoy your holiday and God bless you in your lovely ministry. Thank you for your encouragement and fellowship.
Wonderfully displayed Brenda. Amen to removing the lie. Thank you dear for sharing. Hugs and blessings.
Hi JBR,
Yes, every word that the Holy Spirit speaks is truth isn't it, and it is all about God's love for us. Lovely to hear from you, and glad you and your mum had a nice couple of days with the family (balloon party). God bless
Thank you Brenda for your response above. Blessings to you dear one.
You are very welcome JBR.
Hi Brenda,
Oh how much the world needs Jesus. It is disappointing to see how people in much of the world is turning away from the Lord the things which are good, are called bad. And the bad things are called good. I sure can see how the devil and the world is rising up to try to silence us Christians. In looking at the things going on now days, I am looking up because our Lords return may be very close.
Have a blessed day,
Ken
Hi Ken,
yes the Lord Jesus is the only safe sanctuary isn't He and it is an honour isn't it to be able to shine His light in a darkened world. The name of Jesus is a light in itself. There is only One winner, darkness cannot remain where light exists. You have a blessed day too.
Brenda as usual your post is great and leaves me with a lot to think about, you're a wonderful writer.
That scripture you shared about hearts growing cold because there will be a lot of evil in the last days really made me think even though I have seen it many times, It felt like I just saw it for the first time, that has happened to me in many scriptures, the minute I finally get it, it's like I have seen it for the first time.
The parable about the wedding feast I just understood for the first time just now by reading this post. The original ones invited were the jews, the people in the streets the servants went out and invited are the Gentiles, and now i guess in the last days it's an invite for whoever will accept the Lord, jew or gentile. I could be wrong but it seem like that fits.
I have to say I have seen a lot of evil, even in some of my own deeds and it made me angry and sad, and I could see why God said the love in many will grow cold. Many people will be unable to bear with the evil and may perhaps become evil themselves. I pray God works on my heart that the love within me never grows cold, no matter what evil I am faced with, I hope never to repay evil with evil.
The day after that tornado hit Oklahoma, we had a flood here, over 15-18 inches of rain. In some persons home the water was up to their knees. Cars stalled in the streets, people were on the streets in boats it was something I had never seen before, It was like the water came out of the ground and covered everything, but it was only after like about 4 or 5 hours of rain the flood occurred. The water didn't get inside my home but many other homes had a lot of water damage.
I heard about what happened in England. I kept saying I was going to go on youtube to get the full story because I only heard bits of it. A lot of strange things are going on these days, my faith is in the Lord though, He did tell us not to be afraid when these things happen. Great Post Brenda, God bless you sister. :-)
Lovely to hear that you are ok Sateigdra,
I find the love of God is totally altruistic, and as we who are born again are now the Spiritual Israel we are encouraged in scripture to endure in these times through these scriptures. As with physical Israel, so is Spiritual Israel, and both are starting to be hated in the world to a greater extent. All the more reason to shed the light of Christ Jesus in the darkness, in doing whatever He tells us to do. God bless you Sateigdra, hold fast that which is good.
Great post Brenda, and much to think about; and lovely poetry too.
What a lovely little story that necklace! And your comparison to the spiritual is miraculous. A beautiful lesson. Thank you. There happens so many bad things in the world. We talk to the kids about it. They say: 'God has foretold: the love of many will become cold That's what we see around us. " Let us, by the Spirit of God, spread His light and warmth in this dark world...
Hi Tim,
nice to see you, thank you for your kind comment. I think the scriptures always give us much to think about as the prophesies about the end times appear to be fitting in to our times.
Hi Jedidja,
lovely to see you and thank you for your comment. Yes, God sees the end from the beginning and what He says will happen is happening. Amen to your last sentence.
Dear Brenda, Thank you for your lovely comment. I really believe that God gave us the Internet in these End Times so that we could spread His Word far and wide, and connect more easily with brothers and sisters in Christ. May God bless you and your ministry.
Love in Him,
Laurie
You are very welcome Laurie, and may God bless you and your lovely ministry too. How can we not freely give what we have freely received from the One who loved us enough to be nailed to a cross and spat upon in order to save us from eternal destruction. God bless you Laurie.
I leave you peace, My peace I give you. Not as the world gives... For in this world, you will have many troubles...
It's been a while ma'am. Best wishes. SHALOM
Hello Brave African, thank you for that lovely scripture, it is so true that in the Lord we have peace. God bless you.
I love the depth and richness of your posts, Brenda, and how the Spirit speaks through you to so many people, May God richly bless you and your ministry,
Laurie
Hello Laurie,
thankyou for your re visit, it is always a blessing to read your kind comments. God bless you
Brenda,
I remember reading this...but guess I read it on my phone as I don't see my comment. I do this a lot :)
I loved how you saw the necklace as JESUS! awesome. It testifies both to your focus and your ability to see. You saw JESUS but He also revealed Himself to you...because He sees your focus. Your gaze towards Him brings Him much JOY!
Amen! The Lord is definitely my strength and my song. He has become my salvation!!
blessings to you my friend
Patrina <")>><
Hi Patrina,
yes it is amazing how every day of our lives is written in His book before even one of them was formed. I was meant to see that necklace, I wear it every day. Once a few years ago I was reading about Mispah in Genesis ch.31 for the first time 'It was also called Mizpah, because he said, “May the Lord keep watch between you and me when we are away from each other.'' I thought 'how lovely'. Later that morning I went down to get a present for my husband's birthday. I looked into a jewellers window and in the second hand section was a man's gold ring with the word 'Mizpah' written on it, it was really lovely. I just felt I was supposed to buy it. I took it home and it was a perfect fit on my husband's finger.
I love that story, Brenda. perfect gift for your husband.Its like the Lord hand-picked that gift for him...from you... also, as if the Lord was telling you that HE...the Lord...is watching over you both all the time! Awesome :)
patrina <")>><
Hi Patrina,
I believe absolutely that the Lord does these things for a purpose. When I read about Mizpah, I loved the meaning to it, and then knew that the Lord had me see the ring. I believe He does it in all our lives.
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