Scripture for Today: Isaiah 45:3  “I will give you hidden treasure, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, who summons you by name.”

These chestnuts are all over the ground of the forest up above our house.  They are brown and furry by the time they drop and look like something out of a Star Trek TV episode (the mythical “tribble”).  When they are still green and fresh, the chestnut is difficult to handle with its spiny bur.  But getting at that delicious treasure is worth all the effort!  There can be up to seven chestnuts in one bur.

The chestnut here in France is most often roasted but is also candied, boiled, steamed and grilled.   For Christmas and New Year’s the “marron glacé” is traditional fare, a chestnut that has been glazed in sugar syrup.  For some, the chestnut is an acquired taste, but I enjoy them!

Our verse for today talks about treasures that are hidden.  The riches that the Lord reveals are not so obvious.  Like the chestnut, they are sometimes stored in places difficult to see.  The outside of that hidden treasure makes it easy to miss.  Getting at that treasure may involved going through some tough prickly times.

It is through the hard times that I see God’s love and gentleness with me.  It is when life is difficult that He reveals the treasure of who He is.  His comfort and His grace are the unexpected surprise behind that negative experience.  Through a trial He becomes MY Lord, calling me by My name.  Faith becomes very personal as He reveals to me the treasure of His power and presence.

Help me, Lord, to discover that treasure.  Reveal to me the secret places of Your love!