Saturday, December 12, 2009

12 Pearls of Christmas Giveaway


Too Precious to Wear
by Sarah Sundin

One Christmas when my mother was a girl, she received a string of pearls from her father. Since her parents were divorced-an unusual situation in the 1950s-she treasured the pearls as a sign of her father's love. When he passed away her senior year in high school, the pearls took on even greater significance.

When I was growing up, my mother talked often about the pearls, but my sister and I never saw them. Mom kept them safe in their silk-lined velvet box tucked in her jewelry box. For dressy occasions, she wore other nice jewelry, but never the pearls.

The pearls were too precious to wear.

What if the strand broke and even a single pearl was lost? What if the clasp broke and she lost them forever? She couldn't risk it. Better to keep them cocooned in silky security.

When my mother offered to let me wear her pearls on my wedding day, I was deeply touched. This was more than "something old" or "something borrowed," but a sign that she trusted me and loved me.

A few days before the wedding, my mother pulled the box from seclusion. My sister and I watched with curiosity and awe.

The pearls had turned a deep grayish-yellow, they were flaking, and some had fallen apart.

They were fake.

For over thirty years, my mother nurtured a piece of costume jewelry. All that time she could have worn them and enjoyed them without worry. Her father gave them to her for a purpose-to wear them and feel lovely and ladylike and special. He didn't mean for her to hide them away.

On our wedding day, my husband gave me a strand of real pearls. They symbolize my husband's sacrificial love for me-they were expensive for a graduate student with half-Scottish blood.

I vowed never to tuck them away but to wear them often. Yes, I'm careful. I inspect the cord and knots and clasp, and I plan to have them restrung when necessary. But I wear them and enjoy them. That's why my husband gave them to me.

Our heavenly Father gives us gifts too-brilliant and costly. We should cherish them, but we should use them. Whether our individual gifts involve serving, teaching, encouragement, evangelism, or even money-they have a purpose. The Lord wants us to use our gifts to bless others and to spread the message of His love.

While pearls make women look lovely, using our God-given gifts for His kingdom makes us even lovelier. And just as pearls grow more lustrous with frequent wear, our gifts from God grow in beauty and strength the more we use them.

This Christmas I plan to wear my string of pearls, a sign of my husband's love-and to display my pearls from heaven, a sign of my Father's love.

Have a lustrous Christmas!

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Sarah Sundin lives in northern California with her husband and three children. She works on-call as a hospital pharmacist. Her first novel, A Distant Melody, historical fiction set during World War II, will be published by Revell in March 2010. Please visit her at http://www.sarahsundin.com or her blog or find her on Facebook.




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A three strand pearl necklace will be given away on New Year's Day. All you need to do to have a chance of winning is leave a comment here. Come back on New Year's Day to see if you won!

12 Pearls of Christmas Series and contest sponsored by Pearl Girls®. For more information, please visit www.pearlgirls.info


Giveaway thanks to Litfuse
Please include your email address

8 comments:

Jen Knox said...

What a beautiful symbol of love and the ties that bond a family through the ages. I'm glad to have read this piece, it's lovely. If I win this necklace, I'll have it sent to the woman who taught me to love: my mother.

Anisa Purdin said...

When my Grandmother died my uncle gave me her pearl's that my grandfather gave her, I adore them. and plan to pass them down to my beauiful daughter.I know she will adore them as much as I. This story really touched my heart.. what a heartfelt story..

dawna45123at yahoo dot com

Alessandra said...

Lovely story. I, too, think jewellery is made to be worn, instead of kept hidden.

Alessandra
outofblue1(at)gmail(dot)com

diannap45123@yahoo.com said...

I was blessed to wore my moms pearls at my wedding.Whhen mom went to be with the Lord my brother gave the pearls to my daughter.But mom taught me Gods gifts are so much more precious than any gift we could get here we all need to show and share our gifts God has given us.Great story.

Dixie said...

What a lovely story. And how true-we shouldn't hide away those "gifts" (be they physical or spiritual) that were meant to be enjoyed but cherish and delight in them, and share them with the world.

southrngal(at)gmail(dot)com

Simply Stacie said...

Please count me in.

simplystacieblog at gmail dot com

OEBooks said...

A beautiful symbolic semblance to freeing the individual talents within each of us. Very pretty.

...and I must add, The Page is absolutely gorgeous. The black font against the burnt burgandy wallpaper... oh man... it put me right into the mood of the story!

Sarah E said...

Please enter me in this contest!

saemmerson at yahoo dot com

Sarah Emmerson