Sparkle, Not Spots!

     I have to confess that my heart starts to race a bit when I find a rhinestone necklace at an estate sale. Well, not just any rhinestone necklace, but one that you might have seen on a movie actress in a 1940's film classic! A waterfall of clear stones sparkling every which way when the light hits them. Even when the jewelry table is set up in a dark corner of the room it seems to glow from the reflected light the rhinestones produce. During my first treasure hunts I would purchase these immediately, without taking time for a thorough examination. They always looked lovely at first glance!

     Then I would take them home, sit down with a jeweler's loupe and slowly analyze the condition of each stone. My hope was that the stones would be in "excellent vintage condition" - meaning they weren't chipped, cracked, or clouded, and didn't have any dark spots in the back of the stone. Sometimes my careful examination would reveal imperfections that weren't apparent in the haste of the treasure hunting moment! The beautiful brooch featured above looks perfect, but if you examined it under a loupe you would see that many of the teardrop shaped stones are darkened at the tips!

     It's easy to get caught up in life and race through the time we've set aside to read God's Word and pray. "Just give me a gem for this day!", we might tell God. Our heart, though, requires a closer examination through the loupe of God's Word. The dark spots within need to be found. When a rhinestone gets too many dark spots it loses its ability to reflect the light and stops sparkling. When the dark spots of sin build up in our heart we stop reflecting the Light too! Though it's almost impossible to restore a rhinestone, we can be restored by confessing our sin to God - He will forgive!

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:9