Panning For Gold

It was July of 1886, a winter’s day on the high grassy plains of South Africa. An Australian prospector named George Harrison traipsed through the high grass on the Langlaagte farm and chanced upon an outcropping with embedded nuggets of gold. Content with his little find, he sold his claim for £10 and moved on. Little did he know that underneath him lay one of the largest gold reefs in the world, which soon caused a gold rush and the founding of Johannesburg.

The 1800s was the era of Gold Rush Fever. When gold was discovered in a place, people came from all over the earth to search for their share. They would give up all they had to get a chance to find that nugget of gold. Often one would search for years and find nothing, going bust.

Nuggets From God

Matthew 13:44 describes a man that finds a treasure hidden in a field and in his joy he sells all that he has and buys that field.

The treasure in that verse is not physical gold, but is the Kingdom of heaven. The Lord was teaching His disciples using physical things to help them understand spiritual truths.

So what is a gold nugget from God? It could be a lovely truth from God’s Word that grabs your heart. It could be a moment when you see His hand in your life, His fingerprint.

Might you be like Harrison and miss it because you didn’t intentionally look for it? Most people go through life half asleep, their eyes down, their minds dull … and missing so much wonder. A th(i)nkful person has the eyes and passion to investigate through the swirling dirt and dust of the day to appreciate the nuggets of what God has done for us.

Discovering these treasures is what I am endeavoring to promote by being th(i)nkful. I wish for our eyes to be trained to look for these gifts from the Lord all around us, especially in his Word. In Proverbs 2:4-5 he describes searching for his wisdom as one who searches for hidden treasures.

“if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.”

What About When All I Find is Coal?

It is all well and good to find little golden nuggets, but you may say, “I only see coal in my life.” It may seem impossible for you to see any nuggets from the Lord in your day to day. Trouble, heartache, and sorrow may have engulfed you.

Well, I have a surprise for you. In I Peter 1:3-4 there is a huge nugget available to anyone who desires it.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you”

Your living hope includes a sparkling treasure that no one can take away from you. It is kept in heaven for you. As you begin to see things with God’s eyes, you discover that there is a process going on. Our grace-enabled response to coal turns it into diamonds. He is able to make even my ugliest scars into trophies of his grace. Only Christ can do these miraculous things, but he can.

My Own Personal Nugget

Our oldest son Joshua is the worship leader for a small inner-city church-plant in Allentown, PA. Yesterday just by ‘chance’ I clicked on the ABC LIVE worship service. I love seeing him lead the songs and especially to see our grandson playing his clarinet in the back of the worship team. 🙂

Well, I just happened to click on when they were singing, “Still, My Soul, Be Still” (about 10:30 into the live stream) and I enjoyed hearing the familiar words and tune. The song encouraged my soul again as it has so many times in the past.

Then Joshua began to introduce the next song, he described how he felt when he was with his parents (gulp), and he said that he felt at peace when he was with us. My heart took a little jump. He was using that visual to describe how our heavenly Father wants to relate to us.

That was a golden nugget from the Lord. These nuggets often come unannounced. All of a sudden, without warning, there it is ~ a beautiful golden nugget from the Lord. You may say that hearing your son describe being with his parents as a place of peace is no big deal, but for this momma’s heart it was a big nugget. A gift from the Lord and I took it as such. 🙂

When I train my eyes to look for them, these nuggets are all over the place. Gracious gifts that God gives on a continual basis. Mostly, they are present in His Word, but also in His world.

Have you discovered any nuggets in your life? I challenge you to become a prospector! Share your finds with others and start a gold rush! There are some incredible nuggets that are waiting to be found.

• I opened both eyes this morning;
• I woke up in my bed and not a hospital bed;
• I typed this blog post; arthritis has not taken my fingers;
• I have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb of God;
• Through Christ I have the grace to “power through” anything that He allows to come my way;
• I have no headache at present;
• I get to serve the Lord today.

May God help you to find all the wonderful treasures He has stored up for you in Christ. Colossians 2:3 reminds us that in Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.