But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness." So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.   2 Cor 12:9 (NRSV)

Rainbows, Imperfections, and Diamonds I want to share some thoughts on the notion of "imperfection." I have a diamond ring which was a Christmas present from many years ago. The center stone is a "princess cut," meaning it's square on the top and the bottom part is faceted to make it sparkle. The center stone also has a few noticible flaws, if you look closely. Although it was a gift, I did choose it myself, and I knew when I got the ring that it was "flawed." I saw under a jeweler's loop and a microscope where the stone is imperfect and therefore "less valuable" than a stone with fewer or smaller flaws. In fact, the flaws are so clear that you can see them with the naked eye, if you know where to look. However.... This stone has a very lovely quality to it. When the light hits it the right way, the flaw causes rainbow prisms to appear. I've seen this rainbow effect on many occasions, and it always reminds me of God's many promises. What spurred this particular writing was a visit to a jeweler (just window shopping). I was looking at the lovely things in the shop and got to talking to the jeweler about my diamond (not sure how it came up). He asked to see my ring, and he had a look at it, and cleaned it for me. He remarked on the fact that there's a very expensive process by which they use a laser to cut into a diamond to actually make cuts in it to create rainbow prisms, can you believe that? But my "flawed" and "imperfect" stone is just so well cut and so well set that it does it naturally.... Without the flaws, this stone of mine would be just another expensive rock (and truly, since it was "flawed" it was a lot less expensive than a "high quality" diamond of the same size). But because it is "imperfect," because it is flawed, it reflects rainbows. This reminds me of a song by David Meece, called God's Promises/Rainbows in the Night. The song is about claiming God's many, many promises, but this particular song is based on this promise: A new heart I will give you, and a new spirit I will put within you; and I will remove from your body the heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. Ezekiel 36:26 (NRSV) The chorus of the song is: God's promises are rainbows in the night Shining hope inside When shadows cloud my eyes, His promises Are rainbows in the night Guiding through the darkest times God's promises are rainbows in the night The point of all this rambling is that what makes a diamond real is that it is flawed, and that flaws and imperfections can be beautiful and even be a source of faith and hope in God's promises. A diamond which has no flaws is.... fake. I should also probably note that it takes a long time and a great deal of pressure to turn a lump of coal into a diamond.... New Main Menu About Contact General Writings Index

For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life.   Ephesians 2:10 (NRSV)
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