Life Beautiful
by Margaret McSweeney
During
a quiet moment after Thanksgiving, I started reading my parents' stack
of love letters that I recently found in a storage box. As a Christmas
gift to you, I would like to share my father's words to my mother
written to her during Christmas 1949. This incredible "hug from heaven"
has been a tangible affirmation that Pearl Girls
has true meaning and great worth for women throughout the world. I pray
that God will continue to bless this ministry and outreach. May we all
realize that the grit in our lives can be transformed into grace
through the love of God.
This is what I found written on a tiny folded card inscribed with "Christmas Greetings" on the front:
Christmas 1949
My Dearest Carolyn,
Truly
a jewel is a thing of beauty, but a life that is lived to serve others
and to glorify our Christ, such as yours, is my dearest, a far
surpassing gem in radiance and beauty.
Pearls
to me, symbolize this "Life Beautiful" that you have achieved, Carolyn.
Each pearl is a result of a great hurt to the oyster's life. But the
little mollusk builds an iridescent coat around this source of hurt,
and as a result, the precious pearl comes into being. Life is like that
too.
If we, like the
pearl, can make of our hurts the basis of a thing of beauty, then we
can bear witness to an on-looking world how Christians can overcome
through Christ, blows that are seemingly insurmountable.
At this happiest season of the year, I give thanks to God for you, Carolyn – my Pearl of Great Price.
Your Claude
Isn't
this an amazing Christmas Pearl? I hope this message has touched your
heart, too. Another Christmas gift I would like to share with you: My
father's lessons on leadership. These can be found on my guest blog post at Michael Hyatt's website.
During
this holiday season, decorate your life with Christmas Pearls —
strands of God's grace-reminders that nothing can separate us from his
love, not even the grittiest of circumstances.
And please celebrate the "Pearls of Great Price" in your life through Post a Pearl. It's a fun and free gift that you can share with special people who have been a blessing to you over the years.
Merry Christmas!
Margaret
McSweeney lives with her husband David and two teenage daughters in the
Chicago suburbs. She's the founder of Pearl Girls and a published
author. Please visit www.pearlgirls.info for more info. You can also find Margaret at her writing blog, From Finance to Fiction or on Facebook and twitter.
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Athree 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