Welcome to Day 23 of 31 Extraordinary Days to Be… Or…simply: Be…
Together, we will learn to Be… to live fully and beautifully in our “skin”
and in our homes and beyond. If you missed The Introduction or you’d like
to follow the entire series, you can find each post listed here.
No doubt you have read or heard this old proverb many times:
All that glitters is not gold.
One day my friend was sporting a new ring. It was really very pretty. I complimented her on it, thinking her husband blessed her with it for their anniversary. She thanked me and then went on to say, “I found it in one of those big costume ring trays at Macy’s.” Seriously, to my untrained eye, it looked like something from the fine jewelry store. It was definitely glittery….and gold. But, it wasn’t the real deal.
Download this free printable as a 5×7 image here.
How many times do we yearn for something we don’t have that appears absolutely wonderful….on the surface. The gal with the sparkling personality…the life of the party…she goes home to great emotional pain. Who would know? The guy that drives that amazing sports car….he eats soup from the can because every cent goes to pay his car lease. You create the story…what appears brilliant on the outside may be dark and dirty on the other side.
J.R.R. Tolkien in The Lord of the Rings, The Fellowship of the Ring penned this:
All that is gold does not glitter.
The best things in life are not all sparkly and glittery. They are loving relationships, full tummies, and sunshine. They are also a lost relationship, an empty stomach, and gray skies. How can both of these be gold? When we ‘get’ the true reality of this verse:
We know that in everything God works for the good of those who love him.
Everything we know is temporary. The only thing that always remains is God’s love. If we understand that for his followers, he is always with us, always working for our good, than we can see the true gold. Whatever the circumstance, God is developing us into the individuals he wants to become. When the times are more difficult, we are in the refiner’s fire. We are becoming pure and holy in that fire. And when we have those days of sunshine and goodness…we will have a reservoir to draw from. We’ll be able to love others more genuinely, generously share with those in need, and be a light in a dark world.
Maybe the ultimate contentment is trusting God to work his best in us all the time.
Though our eyes are attracted to the glittery…let’s remember that all that glitters is not gold.
Let’s look for the gold…the pure gold.
Day 23 Challenge: What kinds of glitter are you attracted to? Are you in or outside the fire? Whatever the circumstance, give thanks for it. And trust God in all things. He won’t stopping working good in you if you love and follow him.
Be…content!
Diane
I’m still collecting ideas on how to be encouraging.
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I hope you’ll consider visiting each day during this #31Day series.
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What a wonderful adventure this will be as we journey together to Be…
Wonderful post and the printable is gorgeous. Thank you for sharing.
You are so sweet, Debbie!!
Thank you!!!
Ahh. I can remember seeing fool’s gold as a child and simply not believing it was not gold!! I saw real gold in the pan in the Motherlode area of California and truthfully, fool’s gold glittered more but its worthless. How many dreams have I chased only to discover they were not true and godly and real, though at first they appeared as such? Oh the heartache that followed. Or the times I stubbornly chose some fool’s gold over God’s pure gold and had to go through some fire to be purified into pure gold…
God’s love is true and worthy of praise, even in fiery trials that may or may not be due to sin but no matter what, it draws me closer to The Lord, more eager to share Him…and yes, more vulnerable too.
What catches my earthly eye? I laugh for I truly adore glitter!!! All colors and especially the new fine kind!!! But no, it is not gold nor precious in value.
I think you said it well with these words, Gwen…”fool’s gold glittered more but it’s worthless.” That is our struggle, whether we choose to admit it or not. The refiner’s fire…. I think that much of it comes from through unexpected circumstances…like yours (so very difficult and intense) and mine. I look at how beautiful you are Gwen and see his hand at work in you.
And I think that you just might have a ton of fun with beautiful glittery glitter. And I agree…the fine kind is the best!!
[hugs]
Yup…absolutely gorgeous photo that I snagged for the desktop, tyvm. And I think I like Tolkien’s diddy as well.
As for the glittery stuff…I’m horribly A.D.D. and everything gets my attention when I’m not in conversation with G-d or others who are in need of a piece of my time/attention. Seriously..we call that my “ohlookachicken’ issue. LOL. I want to notice everything. I seem to have a thing for anythinh with colour right now.
And I am alwayssss in the fire. LOL. Seems like it anyway…which is why I occasionally get asked if I like it there! Or maybe I’m simply one of those whoe require heat to mold! LOL. I like that answer! 😉
Oh yeah…..I know that one. As a visual person I’m constantly in that struggle.
Glad you like the photo….enjoy it!! 🙂
Enjoying your 31 days!!! Great post!!! So true! Patsy from HeARTworks
Thank you so much Patsy. It means so much to know you enjoy it. 🙂
Blessings!