An oyster on the ocean floor opened wide its shell. As its valves flushed seawater through, the oyster picked out minute particles of food.
Suddenly a large fish nearby stirred up a cloud of sand and silt with a flip of its tail. Sand! Oh, how the oyster disliked sand! It was so rough that it made life very unpleasant for the oyster whenever any got inside its shell.
Quickly the oyster slammed its shell shut, but it was too late. One hard, gritty grain of sand had gotten in and become lodged between the oyster's flesh and shell.
How that piece of sand bothered the oyster! But almost immediately, special glands God had given the oyster for coating the inside of its shell went to work, coating the irritating grain of sand with a shiny, smooth covering. Year after year the oyster added more layers, until at last it had produced a beautiful, lustrous pearl of great value.
Our problems are like that grain of sand. They bother us, and sometimes we wonder why we have to suffer the irritation and inconvenience they can be. But God will work wonders with our problems and weaknesses, if we will let Him. We become more humble, more prayerful, closer to the Lord, wiser and better able to cope with other problems that come our way. Like blessings in disguise, the Lord soon takes the rough pieces of sand in our life and turns them into precious pearls of inner strength, and they become an inspiration to others.
Suddenly a large fish nearby stirred up a cloud of sand and silt with a flip of its tail. Sand! Oh, how the oyster disliked sand! It was so rough that it made life very unpleasant for the oyster whenever any got inside its shell.
Quickly the oyster slammed its shell shut, but it was too late. One hard, gritty grain of sand had gotten in and become lodged between the oyster's flesh and shell.
How that piece of sand bothered the oyster! But almost immediately, special glands God had given the oyster for coating the inside of its shell went to work, coating the irritating grain of sand with a shiny, smooth covering. Year after year the oyster added more layers, until at last it had produced a beautiful, lustrous pearl of great value.
Our problems are like that grain of sand. They bother us, and sometimes we wonder why we have to suffer the irritation and inconvenience they can be. But God will work wonders with our problems and weaknesses, if we will let Him. We become more humble, more prayerful, closer to the Lord, wiser and better able to cope with other problems that come our way. Like blessings in disguise, the Lord soon takes the rough pieces of sand in our life and turns them into precious pearls of inner strength, and they become an inspiration to others.
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