"NO! I Don't Want That!"

"No thank you, I don't think I want that." There are lots of qualities in the Scripture that I want but there is one that never appealed to me, never. Every time I read about it there was something in me that would recoil, It reminded me of the story of children who would wake up on Christmas morning and find coal in their Christmas stocking. The coal was a cruel joke NOT a gift!

Coal is black and dirty. However, when coal is subjected to high temperatures and incredible pressure over a very long period of time a diamond is born. The beauty of a diamond is found in it's relationship to light. When light hits a diamond there is a dazzling dance and it refracts that light into all the colors of the rainbow.

Now, I understand better the gift that God has been offering me all these years. The problem is that I have been viewing this gift with my flesh and not the Spirit. When ever I look at this gift through my flesh it appears like a dirty black lump of coal. But because God has given me His Holy Spirit I am now beginning to recognize the diamond instead. I am beginning to understand that what is being offered to me is a gift. Through this gift God can shine His love into my life so that those around me can be bathed in all the colors of the rainbow. The very colors that surround His throne in Heaven. Through this beautiful gift God is inviting me to be part of something that is so much greater than I am. He is inviting me to reflect His glory.

I have been blessed to see God's light reflected in the lives of others as they humbly received this gift from God. I have seen it displayed in a mother, whose eyes have been repeatedly washed by tears, and yet she refused to stop loving  and believing in her child. I was privileged to overhear the words of love spoken by a husband to his wife as she lay dying. He held her hand and willing entered into her suffering by his love and I saw a rainbow.

 Heavenly Father, Your word has taught me that love suffers long and is kind. Your word has taught me that long suffering is a fruit of Your Holy Spirit. You Father, are gracious and full of compassion  slow to anger and great in mercy. I understand now that You have invited me by the power of Your Holy Spirit to represent Your love to a hurting ,broken world through being long suffering. Thank You for being long suffering with me and please, please let my life be more like a diamond than coal and let the rainbow of hope be seen in me through Your light.