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Only One Diamond Left June 11, 2007 By Kent d Curry
You know how this story goes as soon as I start it. You just don’t know the specific details. According to the New York Times (April 23, 2006), a small, three week-old company bought a South African diamond mine that had been closed for three years. The mine’s previous owner went bankrupt. In almost no time at all the new company found a diamond larger than a golf ball. At press time they were still estimating its value. The surprise twist isn’t that this rare jewel was found, it’s where it was found. The diamonds mined previously at this site averaged just 1.14 carats. How could this 325 carat diamond, about 285 times larger than the average, be found there? Ultimately, it was just waiting to be discovered. We’ve all felt mired in mediocrity at times—sometimes it’s our career, sometimes it’s our family or finances, other times it’s our walk with God. That’s when we have to dig down into ourselves and find something (a deeper prayer life, an underdeveloped talent, a new opportunity, some training, fresh advice) of value. After all, if the God of the universe loves us, then He’s not through using us if we’re willing to change with the circumstances—just as Paul, Joseph, Daniel, Elijah, and Peter did. Indeed, despite their numerous challenges and setbacks, Joseph refused bitterness, while Daniel is twice described (Daniel 5:12, 6:3) as a man with an “excellent spirit.” “Can any good thing come from Nazareth?” Nathan sneered of Jesus (John 1:46). Maybe only one thing. Happily, it was the diamond of great price. Maybe there’s only thing of value left in you and everyone else has given up on finding it. That doesn’t mean that a 325 carat diamond isn’t waiting to be found. It means someone’s just got to be willing to find it.
ninetyandnine.com
© 2007, Kent d Curry
----- Kent d Curry is an executive editor of ninetyandnine.com, a college and career speaker, and lifelong comics geek.
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