On one of our best family vacations when our children were young, we panned for gems in the mountains of North Carolina. I would have thought the place where we did this was the biggest scam in the world, but friends of ours showed us a PBS special that declared the country in NC was possibly the “gem capital of the world.” They found some precious gems there through the years.
So our family paid the money and had a blast! We not only and fun, we found some treasures as well. In fact, one of my wife’s favorite pieces of jewerly was first just a rock that we would later find out was an aqua marine! Our fee included one stone’s cut, so we had that cut by the resident master. When I later took that aqua marine to a jewler to have it set for an anniversary present, the jewler asked me where I had gotten it. He waid the cut was perfect!
We would later have some of the stones cut that my boys found made into earings for ther future wives, and stones that my girls found made into rings for their 16th birthdays. That vacation has continued to produce multiplied joy for many years!
Sometimes I study the Bible like I was panning for hidden gems. And sometimes, I find some beautiful truths that produce multipled joy!
This week at ABC, I want to share some gems of Grace and Truth that I have panned for in John 11. It’s the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the grave. I will share some things that you just might have missed in your personal study of the passage.
We would love for you to join us on the 30th Street beach in Avalon for our 9am worship service. Bring your beach chair, some Wawa coffee and a whole carload of family and friends.
Avalon Beach Church 