{"id":25370,"date":"2019-03-26T03:30:19","date_gmt":"2019-03-26T10:30:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lccredding.org\/church\/?p=25370"},"modified":"2019-03-21T12:28:48","modified_gmt":"2019-03-21T19:28:48","slug":"march-26-2019","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lccredding.org\/church\/2019\/03\/26\/march-26-2019\/","title":{"rendered":"March 26, 2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\u201cBut let it be the hidden person of the heart,with the imperishable jewel of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious.\u201d 1 Peter 3:4 RSV<\/em><\/p>\n

Imperishable Jewels<\/strong><\/h2>\n

One day I randomly searched blueletterBible.org with two words: God\u2019s heart<\/strong>. Today\u2019s verse touched me the most. In the world\u2019s economy when I think of an imperishable jewel, I think of some big, blingy rock on a movie star\u2019s finger or in a royal crown. But that\u2019s not God\u2019s economy; all I need to remember is, gold is heaven\u2019s asphalt (Revelation 21:21).<\/p>\n

In God\u2019s economy, the imperishable jewel is a gentle and quiet spirit, or, as the Amplified Bible elaborates, \u201cone that is calm and self-controlled, not overanxious, but serene and spiritually mature.\u201d I\u2019m not saying it\u2019s wrong to dress up or wear jewelry, nor is Peter in 1 Peter 3:3: \u201c<\/em>Do not let your adornment be merely outward\u2014arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/em>We just need to realize where our real beauty comes from. It\u2019s not what\u2019s on the outside, but the inner beauty of the heart the Lord is concerned with\u2014indeed, deems precious. What if we took as much time each morning tending to our gentle and quiet spirits as we did our outward adornments? How much of a difference would it make in our day and the way we respond and minister to those around us?<\/p>\n

In our \u201cLoving Well\u201d Bible Study, when we came to 1 Corinthians 13:12 (\u201cFor now we see in a mirror, dimly\u2026.\u201d<\/em>), I admitted I rarely look in a mirror. I get dressed, brush my teeth and hair, glance briefly to make sure things are zipped and buttoned and that\u2019s it. I\u2019m sure it\u2019s partly because I\u2019m not exactly thrilled with what I see looking back at me. While discussing that in our group time, our dear group leader said something like: \u201cWhy don\u2019t you ask God to show you what He sees when He looks at you?\u201d Hmmm…<\/p>\n

He sees a precious and imperishable jewel. Not because I\u2019m all that, but because of His Son. Isaiah 43:4 (NLT) says, \u201cOthers were given in exchange for you. I traded their lives for yours because you are precious to Me. You are honored, and I love you.\u201d David Guzik\u2019s commentary says, \u2026 \u201cThis is an Old Testament example of the truth in John 3:16<\/a>: ‘For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son<\/em>.’\u201d<\/p>\n

God also gives us His Spirit to dwell in us and to produce His fruit: love, joy peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23a). He provides the very things that make us precious to Him. All He asks us to do is take the time to develop them.<\/p>\n

\u201cFather God, thank You for loving us. Remind us to look at, and give attention to, our unfading inner beauty. Help us become the imperishable jewels You created us to be. Amen.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>

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