What Does Your Jewelry Say?

On my recent trip to the beach, I bought a few pieces of jewelry. Nothing expensive. In fact, the most I spent on any one item was $10.00. After my 3rd bracelet, I realized that everything I purchased had a common theme...there was a message. Then I thought about most of my accessories. Most of them have a special message or meaning. Not to show off to the world though, but to remind me.

I am a visual person. I mean really visual. Gifts, emails, letters, trinkets with meaning touch my heart deeply and I usually attach a memory with each one I purchase or receive. Examples:

My Rings:

Left Hand

*On vacation I bought a silver ring with a J on it. The J is for my husband's name, Jeff. I look at it and I smile because he is the love of my life.

*Two weeks ago, my husband purchased me a new wedding band. Well, he kind of purchased it. He actually won $1500 to Tiffany's at Bingo. We went to Tiffany's together and got a new platinum thick wedding band, to symbolize a renewal in our love and commitment to each other. This is by far my favorite piece of jewelry. The very plain, neverending circle is a reminder of our simple yet beautiful love. We've faced trials in the past year, but we are together for the long haul. And he is the greatest blessing in my life.

Right Hand

*A silver ring with the word 4GVN engraved on it. This reminds me that NO MATTER WHAT Jesus loves me and I am indeed forgiven by Him. This was given to me by my very good friend Denise.

*And on my pinky, due to swelling and growth of my fingers over time, my engagement ring and wedding ring that my husband gave me 19 years ago, are now on this finger. When I look at them, I am reminded of 2 young people in love having no idea of the wild ride they were about to go on!

Bracelets:

At the beach, I purchased 3 and was given 1:
*I bought a silver Scripture bracelet. It says, For With God, all things are possible. Mark 10:27 This is one of my favorite verses. I need the reminder because I am often full of doubt.

*Another silver bracelet with a simple cross on it.

*Another silver bracelet with a circular pendant on it. On the circle it says HOPE. When my husband and I were going through marriage trials last year, this word was an anchor to me. Jeff gave me HOPE that we could and would make it through our difficult time. The Lord gave me HOPE that He would guide me and love me and get me through whether my marriage survived or not. Thankfully, it's not only surviving, but thriving.

*A Silver bracelet with pink and clear beads. There are 3 silver oval pendants on this one. One says Special. One says Love. One says Forever. Jeff bought me this one at the beach just last week. Thanks honey:) I love you!

*A Silver bracelet with 4 pendants of 4 different shapes. A square with a B on it. A circle with an H on it. An oval with a D on it. And a heart with an HG on it. This was given to me by my Bible study group a few years ago. The letters stand for the names of my children, Blake, Hayden, Dylan, and Hayley Grace.

*A Gold charm bracelet, this is possibly my only gold one! Each charm has a special meaning. I will NOT allow a charm to go on it unless it has a deep special place in my heart. The charms: Blake, Hayden, Dylan Hayley Grace, 1/2 of a heart (my long time and very good friend Amy has the other half), a Charleston Charm, a Fraternity Lavalier (from my husband in college), and Mickey Mouse.

My t-shirts are the same way. Either with a message, my favorite football teams, or a favorite place I've visited. Same with the magnets on my refrigerator. Either the kids made them or they came from a favorite place or a special friend...just sweet little reminders of special people, special memories, and special places. I also love the Willow Tree Figures. I have 3 really special ones: one from Donna who has been like my angel over the past year (it is 2 girls sitting an talking), one is in memory of my dog of 15 years Poppy (it is an angel holding a dog- I bought this one for myself), and one is an angel bowed down in prayer given to me by a high school friend of mine Gretchen to thank me for praying for her. And then there's the little guy. He's so cute. A little Willow Tree Boy freely positioned holding the word HOPE. This one was given to me by Jeff:)

Tonight I'm going to dinner/Bible study with my 2 JAM girls. (JAM stands for Julie, Alexa, and Melissa...we meet every other week to pray, talk about life, and study the Bible. See, I even have a visual name for us...JAM...I'm silly like that!) I bought them Scripture bracelets and Husband initial rings too. I can't wait to give them to them. We have been encouraging each other in our marriages and our walks with God. It is my prayer that these little tokens will be visual encouragement to each of them.

Does your jewelry say anything? What do your clothes say about you? Do you have any special items that remind you of anything?

If I can actually get my camera to work, I'll try to post some pictures of my new jewelry tomorrow! I'm sure you can't wait...just kidding.

Blessings,

Melissa