Isaiah 45:3 “I will give you hidden treasures, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who summons you by name.”
It was Sunday morning and I had just finished the last talk of five I had given at a weekend retreat for pastors’ wives. We were breaking into groups for discussion when one of the ladies realized she had lost her diamond. Her wedding ring was still on her finger, but the diamond setting was gone. We were all sympathetic to her situation. No woman wants to lose her wedding ring! So everyone began the search. Just as the near panic-stricken lady started to run back to her room to hunt, I felt a nudge from the Lord…Ask them to stop and pray.
Even though I felt a bit awkward (I was not the retreat leader, only the speaker), I resisted the urge to say nothing and blurted out, “Could we pray?”
They all looked a little surprised, but of course agreed. So I started asking God to help us. While I was praying the woman put her hand in her pocket. When I finished, she pulled her hand out saying, “I think I feel something.”
It was her lost diamond.
It was a clear sign to me that God wanted us to know he was with us. She could have easily not put her hand in her pocket and thrown her jeans in the wash, never finding the diamond. But in response to prayer…..I believe a miracle took place. It reflected what had happened that weekend. Healing was occurring in the ladies’ lives. A deep work-not a quick fix-that would continue long after the retreat was over. It’s as if the Lord wanted to assure the women they were returning home with a diamond of healing in their pockets…not to be overlooked.
How about you? Do you ever question whether God is answering your prayers? Or that he is even with you? He purposes that everything we encounter leads us to a deeper knowledge of who he is. Like “riches stored in secret places,” it’s sometimes necessary to go beyond the surface in order to find the true treasure. So don’t abandon your hope…
Don’t throw your jeans in the wash and lose the diamond.