All That Glitters

I do not like glitter.
My children made crafts, did artwork, painted, and played with Play-doh.
We had rolls of butcher paper that I would keep for the many pictures they would draw.
I encouraged creative expression, minus the glitter.

Glitter just seemed to be everywhere.
Even after we cleaned up, I would still see specks of glitter on my kitchen floor days later.
Children love anything sparkly; the more glitter the better.
I was a stick in the mud about this one thing.

Even today, I will not buy a card with glitter on the front.
Especially at Christmas time, cards seem to be covered in glitter.
My guess is that it resembles snow.
Except snow melts and glitter lingers far too long.

I remember wanting high-heeled shoes when I was a little girl.
The kind of dress up high-heeled shoes you can buy at the dollar store.
They were plastic, terribly gaudy, and horribly uncomfortable.
I liked them most of all because they sparkled.

I always liked Dorothy’s ruby slippers.
Oh, to have a pair of shoes like that!
Click my heels and be transported home.
In my mind, there was nothing better than red, sparkly shoes.

I did get the dollar store high heels, which cracked in a couple of days.
I did have a mock pair of ruby slippers with the sparkle rubbed off in places.
All that glitters is not gold.
Just because something looks attractive does not mean it is actually genuine or valuable.

The reverse is often true.
Sometimes things that look ordinary and dull are actually priceless.
To a little girl wanting sparkly shoes, explanations were useless.
Glittery, sparkly shoes were best; there was no changing my mind.

Pyrite, or fool’s gold, reflects more light than authentic gold.
Gold in it raw form has a dull appearance and does not glitter.
Many things that appeal to our senses can actually be false.
Glitter shines and entices but there is nothing of value to back it up.

The bubblegum machine dispensed gold rings if you were fortunate enough to get one.
I wore that ring for an entire afternoon, until a black line wrapped around my finger.
My mother scrubbed that black line off with a Brillo pad when soap and water failed.
How disappointed I was.

My gold ring was not real gold.
My ruby slippers were not really made of rubies.
My sparkly, glittery high heels broke much too soon.
Rude awakenings.

One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the time of prayer, at three in the afternoon. Now a man crippled from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple courts. When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money. Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, “Look at us!” So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them. Then Peter said, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.” Taking him by the right hand he helped him up, and instantly the man’s feet and ankles became strong. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God. When all the people saw him walking and praising God, they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him. (Acts 3:1-10)

Silver and gold I do not have, but what I have I give to you.

The man wanted glitter and gold and shiny things that would sustain him.
The man received something that looked dull by comparison.
Yet, in reality, the man received something far more priceless.
The man was able to walk and it was miraculously done in Jesus’ name.

Treasure without the glitz.

Do we miss the treasure looking for all that glitters?
Do we fail to see the value of what is in front of us because it looks ordinary?
Do we recognize the fact that glitter fades, wears off, and loses its appeal?
However, gold lasts; gold gets finer with age.

I don’t want to be lured by all that glitters.
I don’t want to see the shine but not the substance.
I don’t want the sparkly, temporary things.
I want to wait for the real thing.

I want to come out as golden even when I am tested in the fire.
I want to hold out for the priceless instead of being satisfied with the fleeting.
I want to see golden things in ordinary things because they have been touched by God.
I want to click my heels and be transported Home.

All that God touches is golden.
Even when put through the fire, gold is refined.
Glitter?
No thank you.

I want gold, pure gold, gold that lasts.
I want ordinary treasure made golden because it has been touched by Jesus.