A Mere Copy of the True

Miss/Jr. Miss GMA Presentation

This story was recently sent to me over the internet by e-mail.

A little girl and her mother were shopping one day. As they were checking out, the little girl noticed a string of plastic pearl beads hanging on the display case. She asked her mother for the beads. Her mother always wanted to teach her the value of money at every opportunity.

Mother told her, "They cost $2.45. That is a lot of money to spend for beads. You'll have to do extra chores at home to help pay for them. You know your aunt also sends you $1.00 each year for your birthday. You may have to spend that money for the beads."

The little girl agreed to all these conditions to get to purchase the beads. When they returned home, she went right to work cleaning up her room and doing small chores for her mother. About a week later a birthday card arrived from her aunt with the dollar in it. She quickly took the money to her mother and asked it her beads were paid in full. Her mother told her they were now paid for. The little girl wore them constantly. She never wanted to take them off.

The child's father had noticed how important the beads had become to his little daughter. One night, as was his custom, he went into her room to tell her goodnight.

"Would you give me your beads?" he asked her.

"Oh no, Daddy," she said. "I love my beads. I want to always wear them. But, you can have my doll. You know she is my favorite toy, but you can have her if you want her."

"No, thank you. Daddies don't need baby dolls. You can keep her," he replied. "Goodnight. I love you with all my heart."

About a week later he went into her room again to tell her goodnight.

"Would you give me your beads tonight?" he asked her.

"Oh no, Daddy," she said. "I love my beads. I love to wear them all the time. But, you can have my teddy bear with the red ribbons."

"No, thank you, dear. Daddies don't need red ribbons to wear," he said. "Goodnight. I love you with all my heart."

Every night he went into her room to tell her goodnight. After a few days, he went in to say goodnight and found her sitting on the side of her bed crying. As he approached her to see what was wrong with his darling daughter, she held out her hand to him. He held his hand out as she dropped the pearls into his hand.

"Here," she sobbed. "You can have my beads, Daddy."

He took the beads and put them in his coat pocket. He picked up his little daughter and hugged her close as he reached in his other pocket and pulled out a new pearl necklace for her. He told her he had the real pearls for her all along. All she had to do was give him the cheap plastic ones to receive the precious gift.

This story illustrates to us how we, as Christians, want to hang on to things that we think are special; in reality, if we would let go of these earthly things, Jesus has more precious gifts to bestow on us.

Jesus said, "In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also,” (John 14:2-3).

This verse reminds us that Christ does not substitute cheap copies of the real heaven as gifts for His children. No man has made the heavenly abode where Christ reigns beside God in heaven. God has created heaven for us with all the riches he possesses. In order to receive this special gift there are a few things we must be willing to give up to Jesus so he can replace them with his gifts.

First of all, we must give up our self-centered attitude of being worth more than others. We are all created equal in God's eyes. No one is above anyone else to Him. He is God and we are his workmanship. We must offer to him the worship of complete surrender of ourselves to receive His most precious gift: the gift of eternal salvation.

Next we must be willing to surrender our possessions to Him. If we hold anything back from total surrender, then we are placing that item above Jesus. That act becomes a type of worship of our possessions. We must not let anything stand between us.

Our time is another area that must be surrendered to Jesus. We must use our time we have each day wisely. Each moment is precious and must not be wasted on frivolous things. We must dedicate a portion of each day to prayer and Bible study so that we will be ready for each witnessing opportunity that Jesus sends our way. We must view every person as a soul God has brought into our life for a purpose. We must be willing servants for Him; and be completely surrendered to Him.

Before we present the girls tonight, I would like for you to stand and sing the first and last verse of “I Surrender All.”

Song: I Surrender All

The first group of girls we present tonight are the girls who are just beginning in the GMA program. These girls have been attending for the past month and have learned the GMA Watchword, Aim, Allegiance and Star Ideals. They will receive their basic pin.

These girls will recite ______________________________________. Their Counselor will present them with the Basic Pin.

The first step the girls must pass on the Forward Step staircase is the Maiden Step. In this step they memorize scriptures that tell them of their sinful condition and what they must do to be saved. Very few girls finish this step without giving their heart to Jesus. Their counselor will present their Maiden Wreath. These girls have completed the Maiden Step.

(present your girls)

The next step is the Lady-in-Waiting. The girls study the church covenant and scriptures relating to the Lord’s church. They also study the lives of great Baptist of the past. They finish this step with greater dedication to the church. The counselor for this step will present the girls with their pin. The girls completing this step this year are: (Present your girls.)

The next step is the Lady step. In this step the girls learn more about praise and worship of our Lord. Their Counselor will present their pins. The girls who have completed this step are: (Present your girls.)

Next is the Princess Step. In this step the girls the Faith chapter of Hebrews 11 and the Baptist Doctrinal Statement. They learn what being a Baptist means based on the scriptures. They must take a comprehensive test on the doctrinal statement before they can pass this step. Completing this step:

(Present your girls.)

Finally we begin the Queen steps. In the first of the Queen steps the girls study the life of Christ and His commitment to us and what our commitment to Him should be. Their counselor will present their pin. They will be crowned by their mother. (Present your girls.)

The second step for a Queen is the Regal Queen step. In this step the girls study the life of Paul the Missionary and more advanced ways of serving Christ through his church such as tithing. We present one girl tonight who has completed this step. Their counselor present their bracelet.

(Present your girls.)

The next step is the Imperial Queen. In this step the girls learn the importance of not compromising with the world and Satan’s temptations. They learn of ways to escape these temptations by reading two books about spiritual growth and they study the life of Ruth. Their counselor will present them with their scepters. These are the girls who have completed this step.

(Present your girls.)

Next is the Superior Queen Step. In this step the girls learn the importance of witnessing for Christ. They must study the life of Mary, the mother of Jesus, an acceptable teenager. They must read a book on salvation and be able to witness to someone using Bible scriptures they have learned to lead them to Christ. Their counselor will present their capes. (Present your girls.)

Finally, in the GMA Forward Steps is the Sovereign Queen Step. In this final step the girls learn more about the Lord’s second coming and what heaven will be like. They must read Cobb’s Baptist Manual and two more books on spiritual growth. They are required to become more familiar with the WMA and the GMA Counselor’s Guidebook in order to now become a GMA counselor. The counselor for this step will present the white Bibles.

(Present your girls.)

Jesus told his disciples in our theme verse tonight that he was going away to prepare a place for them and he would come again to receive them to that special place himself.

The Hebrew writer tells us in chapter nine, verse twenty-four, "For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true' but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us:"

These verses tell us how special the gifts that Jesus is preparing for us really are. We should respond to these gifts with a greater spirit of thanksgiving and praise to Him. Just as the little girl in our story at the beginning had to give up the cheap imitation pearls in order to receive the real one, the GMA girls have also had to give up many things that were not spiritually centered to get where they are tonight. The younger girls are just beginning this long walk in their Christian life where many decisions will have to be made about compromising, trading off, or giving in to worldliness. Each day we must be willing to give up what stands between us and serving Christ.

In your program tonight you have a “pearl necklace”. Hold this pearl in your hand and think of the things you have let stand in the way of your worship and service. When the invitation is given will you be willing to come to the altar and lay down the fake pearl that has been hindering your spiritual life? Don’t bring that pearl to the altar if you do not seriously intend to get rid of the hindrance. Don’t walk out the door and say to the preacher, “You stepped on our toes tonight.” If you walk out the front door and tell him that instead of coming to the altar to tell him and God why he stepped on your toes, what you are really saying to him is this: “There’s sin in my life. You touched it tonight, but I’m not going to do anything about it.”

The pastor will now offer his words of encouragement and the invitation.

Prayer of dedication.

Reception in the Fellowship Hall