LAYERS OF LIFE

USGN article
by Terry Franklin
August 1998

We recently returned from a family summer vacation. And what do the Franklins do when they go on vacation? Well, we go camping . . . not your "Holiday Inn" style camping. Hey, my kids are in about 170 motel rooms a year; the Ramada Inn just isn't gonna hack it. I mean, the real deal--a pop-up camper. Okay, okay, I guess if we were really doing it we'd be in a tent, but that's taking it a bit too far for me.

We camped near the beautiful little town of Cartersville, Georgia. If you drive through this town there is a side street where a large Coca-Cola advertisement has been painted on the side of one of the old brick buildings. Of course, this would never get your attention because there are thousands of these around the south, not to mention Coca-Cola advertisements all around the world. But this one was the very first Coca-Cola sign ever. An enterprising young Coca-Cola salesman in the late 1800's thought that a painted sign might be just what was needed to entice people to try his brand-new product. When the owner bought the current building, he was told of the sign . . . but at that time it was under twenty-three layers of paint. The owner painstakingly removed layer after layer of paint to get to his jewel . . . the beautiful Coca-Cola sign that has now become a major point of interest in the little town.

I got to thinking about it. Many people have a wonderful jewel way down deep inside of their lives, but it's been "painted" over by layers of all kinds of things--hurts from childhood, broken promises, broken dreams, unmet expectations, and a multitude of all of the things that life has had to throw at them. But when we give our lives to Jesus Christ, He painstakingly pulls back all of the layers to get right down to the essence of who we are. And when Christ reaches down . . . right down to the core of our being, He gives us His life. And like a billboard, it proclaims His glory for all others to see.

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©1998 Terry & Barbi Franklin.