Dear Heavenly Father, six days ago, my
husband surprised me with an expensive and very beautiful cross necklace that I
can only suppose came from You.
Excited, he couldn’t wait until
Mother’s Day, to offer his gift. After hours of shopping, LeeRoy had a little
help in ruining the surprise when our youngest son, Travis barreled into the
trailer and blurted out just how much his dad had spent on the costly gift.
At first, I tried my best to graciously
accept his thoughtful present. But as the hours passed, the pricey charm and
matching chain began to fill my heart with guilt. So, I humbly approached my
husband and shared my feelings. "Honey, it's just too expensive. You know
me; I’d rather spend the money on purchasing Bibles for others." My
husband remained quiet. I could immediately tell that his heart was broken.
Nonetheless, the next day, my
husband drove to the mall to return the cross necklace. Then, he drove to the
Family Christian store and purchased a gift card. When he walked through the
door of our trailer, my husband’s hazel eyes were misty. “Something is terribly
wrong.” I thought. "What's wrong honey?" I inquired. "It's just
the woman in the store had only been working there, I think less than a week.
It was her first return and she looked so disappointed." I hugged my
husband and replied, "Don't worry honey, I will go to the jewelry
store and share my testimony with the woman. She will understand 'why' I
couldn't accept such an extravagant gift." I must have sounded so
prideful!
Then, today I drove to the mall with
Travis. I had planned to purchase a new cheap dress to wear to an upcoming
wedding. However once there, I shared my intentions with my son. "I would
like to share my testimony with the woman in the jewelry store." Then, we
walked to where I thought my husband had purchased the necklace.
Right away, I was quickly greeted by
a saleswoman. "Have you been
helped?" She asked. "Oh, I am just waiting to speak to the sales
woman who sold a cross necklace to my husband last week," I responded. "Was there something wrong with
it?" She asked. "Oh no," I
replied. Then, I immediately began to share my testimony with the woman. After
I finished, the woman said, "Ma'am, I am sorry but there is no one here
that meets the description of the sales woman you are referring to."
Stunned, I called my husband. "Honey, what was the name of the jewelry
store where you bought the necklace? And, could you describe the sales woman
who sold and later returned the necklace to
you?" My husband provided the same description. Meanwhile, my son was
talking in my other ear and adamantly saying, "It was this store Mom. We
stood right over there." Then, he pointed across the glass counter to the
other side of the store. For a moment, it felt like time had completely stopped
while everyone in the store, now listening in on the story, pondered the
question. “Who sold the charm necklace to my husband?”
I was still trying to
understand the mind boggling situation, when the woman softly spoke up and
said, "God must have place it on your husband's heart to buy that necklace
for you."
Dumbfounded, I replied, “Maybe you
are right.” Then, I slid my credit card across the glass counter top. Humbly, I
placed the sweet charm around my neck, hugged the woman and turned
to leave.
A few hours later, I glanced at my
beautiful cross charm again. In my heart, I prayed a tearful prayer. "Lord,
I don't feel worthy to wear this charm. For so many years, I wore a cross charm
while leading others away from You. What if I make the same mistake again?"
Before I could finish my prayer, out of the blue, several doves flew directly
over my head. I felt Your presence and as a result, I found myself
excitedly explaining all that had happened earlier to a stranger nearby. As
I told the woman how I had acquired the necklace, I looked once again
at my beautiful new cross. This time, I noticed the cross had a
heart shape surrounding it. I thought, "Before, I simply wore a cross
charm. I wore the Cross as a symbol, but I didn't honor it. Now, I
wear this cross with a heart that appreciates God’s gift of love, sacrifice and grace. Thank You Father for my
precious gift and the gift of the Cross! In Jesus’ name. Amen.”
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