Tonight Shereen graduated from the Recovery Program at our church. Two years ago she was a Bible College student in my classes, but after some poor choices in her personal life, Shereen’s parents told her she needed make some changes. Since she had grown up in our church, the last thing Shereen wanted to do was join the women’s program here. But she did it anyway and tonight we got to witness the beauty that is a life submitted to God.
Diamond cutters say that sometimes a rough diamond has to suffer major cuts for the sake of the best shape. Sometimes more than half of the rough is sacrificed for the ultimate goal of the perfect cut. It is a diamond’s shape that determines the light reflection that makes a stone sparkle. A beautiful diamond is the result of a master diamond cutter at work.
When Shereen first checked herself into the program, I remember thinking, “This is a cut worth making.” Shereen probably could have moved on with her life and been successful. She is smart and beautiful. But she made the decision to focus on her spirit instead. She didn’t settle for just being almost O.K. Instead, she submitted to the cutting of the Master.
Tonight I saw the brilliant work of Jesus alive in Shereen. She said in her remarks tonight, “I found out that God really is everything He says He is.” And that says it all.
