BOLD Ministry

An ancient Arabian tale tells of thee merchants who crossed the desert.
In the daytime, they would pitch tents for shelter from the desert sun.
When the starts came out, they would ride their camels in the cool of the night. At one point, the merchants crossed a dry river bed under the stars.
"Halt!" said a voice from the darkness. All three men jumped down from their camels and huddled in fear.
"Who's there?" One of them said.
Don't be afraid, said the voice in the dark.
"I won't harm you if you do as I say. See those pebbles at your feet?"
By the dim starlight, the merchants saw thousands of pebbles in the riverbed.
"Each of you - pick up a pebble and put it in your pocket."
The three merchants obeyed. Each took a pebble from the riverbed :Now leave this place" the voice said, "And leave this place and don't stop until daybreak."
The merchants mounted up. One said, "What is this all about?"
"I will only say this," the voice replied. "In the morning, you will be happy and sad. Now, go!"
Baffled, the three merchants proceeded on their way. As they traveled they wondered what the voice meant, by saying, "That they would be both happy and sad."
When morning came, the merchants stopped. Each man pulled the single pebble from his own pocket and saw that it sparkled in the morning sunlight. The "pebbles" were precious gems. One man had a ruby, another an emerald and the third a sapphire.
"Jewels!" One merchant said, his face shining with joy.
"Oh no!" wailed the second merchant.
"There were thousands of jewels all over the riverbed. Each of us took only one! Why didn't we grab handfuls?"
"Look!" Shouted the third, pointing behind them.
A desert wind had wiped up, erasing their tracks. "We can never find our way back!"
The voice in the desert had spoken truly. The merchants were happy and sad. They had found wealth in the desert - but they could have taken more!
This parable reminds us of the desert places that we will all go through on our way to finding God's will for our lives. God leads us out into the wilderness and invites us to fill our pockets with the riches of his wisdom and grace. Tragically, we pick up only a pebble or two. A day will come when we look back and feel happy for the riches that we have found - and sad that we didn't gather more.