Stones – thoughts by Terry Stead

“This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you” John 15:12

I have always loved walking along the beach, or through a paddock, or searching through disused quarries. Why?  Well, I love stones and pebbles.  Each one is different whether it is their size, their color, their texture or their shape and I marvel at the different strata’s that make beautiful patterns in them.  Even broken rocks have their inner beauty and it is often only when they are broken that you can see the magnificence within.  Some are smooth and easy to handle, beautiful colors and rare gems of beauty, while others are rough and hard, and have pieces which scratch and hurt me when I hold them in my hand.

That started me thinking about how stones and pebbles are like the people who we meet each day.  Some are easy to love and fit into our lives as if we have known them forever, but others have a prickly side and we are hurt by what they do and say.  Some may have been broken by situations, mental anguish, disease or disability.

Each of us are made up of many layers, just like the strata’s in the rocks that I love, and how often do we take the time to get to know the true person who is the combination of all these layers?  Sometimes we can only see the dirt and grime which hides the beauty within us, just like stones, every person has a beauty of their own.

Next time you meet someone think of the beauty of the layers that are inside, even if they are deeply hidden.

Prayer: I need your help, Gracious Lord, in the way I perceive those with whom I come in contact each day.  Don’t let me make snap judgments simply on the way they look or what they say. Allow me to look deeper and see their inner beauty and so appreciate them.  Amen.

by Terry Stead
Used by Permission

FURTHER READING

• God Works for the Good – by Roy Lessin

• God Works for the Good – by Charles Spurgeon

• I Had Three Basic Goals in Life