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I browsed the store’s rings. Suddenly, I saw a twelve-stone beautiful aurora of colors that hypnotized and caused my jaw to drop. I felt myself almost needing to drool uncontrollably.

As the jewelry counter clerk approached me, I wiped my mouth with embarrassment, knowing the price was beyond my spending limit. But I asked to try it on anyway, although my hand and fingers were rough and callused from working conditions and circumstances of a hard life. I gently slid it on my finger, and of course, it fit perfectly. A feeling of undeserving value came over me.

The jeweler told me I deserved the ring. I stepped back and glanced at my hand with the beautiful ring on my finger. A heartfelt sadness overcame me. I sniffled, thinking I would never have enough to purchase the ring.

With piercing eyes, the jeweler gazed at me as if the ring were a gift. He had worked hard to craft the ring, spending countless hours to ensure it had no flaws. His time and dedication were so valuable.

Then I heard a voice telling me I was a child of God and worthy of this royalty. It belonged to me if I would receive the gift.

The ring represents the foundations of the new heaven with twelve stones. God is the Jeweler, and the customers are us. We may feel undeserving of the royalty that John talks about. After all, we are sinners and made differently. But so were the apostles.

Our different characteristics can represent the various stones in the ring. God molds us into what we need to be for Him, as the potter shapes the clay. In this way, we can further God’s kingdom. God puts us through the fire to conform us to the likeness of Christ.

In this journey of life, we must look to the Redeemer and reverence Him. God loves us unconditionally, just as a parent loves their child. But the question is whether we have received the gift of salvation. Be among those to whom God will say, “Well done, good and faithful servant. You belong to my royal family.”