It was the most beautiful dress that I had ever seen! Navy velvet with a blue satin skirt and beaded sequins in the shape of snowflakes. My mom was busy looking at winter coats so I walked over to touch the soft velvet and silky satin. “Oh, what would it be like to wear this dress?” I wondered.
The dress was not on clearance and the amount on the price tag was a lot more than we could spend, but the dress had cast a spell on me and I finally worked up the courage to show it to my mom. Mom looked at the price and said, “Kelli, it’s a very nice dress, but I’m sorry we just can’t afford it.”
I begged and pleaded to at least try it on so I could see what I looked like in the dress. Mom relented and I changed into the dress with lightning speed. Looking at my reflection in the changing room mirror, I twirled and grinned as the skirt swished around my waist. This was the dress of my dreams! I went to show Mom and by this time my dad had joined her. I beamed from ear-to-ear twirling about and decided to ask one last time. Dad looked at the price, looked at Mom, and looked back at me, shaking his head. Heartbroken, I returned the dress to the rack. We finished up at the store and went home.
That night as I got ready for bed, Mom told me to go look in the bedroom because Dad had a surprise for me. I flipped on the lights and there laid out on my bed was the blue dress. I was overjoyed and gave Dad the biggest hug. What an amazing gift! I counted down the days until Sabbath and excitedly slipped into my new dress to wear to church. I felt like a princess as I floated into my Sabbath school room and sat down next to friends, smoothing the satin skirt.
Unfortunately, my joy soon turned into sadness. You see, some girls made fun of my brand-new beautiful dress. I flushed hot with embarrassment and swallowed back tears. When we got home from church, I put the dress into my closet and never wore it again. Over the next few months, Dad would ask me to wear the blue dress, but I’d make up excuses. I could tell that it hurt his feelings that I wasn’t wearing his special gift for me, but I didn’t want to risk getting teased again. To this day, this memory makes me sad because I rejected a special gift that my father gave me because he loved me.
The Greatest Gift
Did you know that God, our heavenly Father, has given us a very special gift? Because He loves us so much, Jesus gave his life for us on the cross and gifted us salvation. As a result, we get to wear a beautiful robe of righteousness! Isaiah 61:10 says, “I am overwhelmed with joy in the Lord my God! For he has dressed me with the clothing of salvation and draped me in a robe of righteousness…”
We are God’s beloved children and He loves to give his kids good gifts (Matthew 7:11). Sometimes we might get embarrassed or ashamed of our friendship with Jesus. Thankfully, our robe of righteousness isn’t something we can take off and bury in a closet. It’s our free gift from Jesus, no matter what (2 Corinthians 5:16-21). So do a twirl! You are clothed in a beautiful robe of righteousness and God says you look fabulous!
