In her book, Stories from the Heart, Alice Gray retells a story written by Ann Weems entitled, “Heirloom.” I want to share that story with you today.
It had been in the family for generations. And it belonged to his great great grandmother; he knew that he had to be very careful with it. The vase was one of his mother’s most precious treasures. She had told him so. The vase, placed high on the mantle above the fireplace, was out of the reach of little hands. But, somehow, he managed to get to it. He just wanted to see it, wanted to look at the artwork, wanted to investigate what was inscribed on it, wanted to study the border that went all the way around the vase. He did not realize, however, that a boy’s five-year-old hands are sometimes clumsy and not meant to hold delicate porcelain treasures. And so, it slipped from his finger and shattered on the hearth of the fireplace below him. He began to cry. In a matter or seconds, his cry progressed to a sobbing wail, and that sobbing wail grew louder and louder. From the kitchen, his mother heard her son crying hysterically, and she immediately came running. Her footsteps hurried down the hall and came around the corner. She stopped, looked at him, and saw what he had done. Between his sobs, he could barely speak any words. But he managed to get out, “I broke…..THE VASE. I am so so so so SO SO SO sorry!” After a pause that seemed like an eternity, his mother approached him and gave him a very unexpected gift. With a look of relief on her face, his mother said, “Oh, thank heavens! I thought you had hurt yourself!” And then, she reached out to him and held him tenderly in her arms until his sobbing stopped. She soothingly whispered in his ear, “You, my son, are my most precious treasure! I love you so so SO MUCH!” Without any question about it, she made it very clear that day that HE was her most precious treasure, and NOT some porcelain vase.
Sometimes, I believe that we think that there are more important things that God values other than us. Sometimes, we believe that God‘s Commandments, God‘s laws, God‘s call for righteousness, or God’s morality are more valuable and precious to God than we are. But that’s simply not true. God’s unconditional love for us is God’s gift to us, and we are God’s most precious treasure. We break God’s commandments and laws, we fall short of God’s righteousness and moral expectation. But in spite of our mistakes and misgivings, God wraps us up in everlasting arms of grace, and we can hear God’s words whispered to our hearts once again, “YOU are my most precious treasure! And I love you with an unstoppable love!” Thanks be to God! Some Friday love for you to begin your weekend……have a great one!
With Love,
Pastor Brad
