Matthew 13:46 – Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.

Genesis 22:17 – That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies;

Sand is the fuel the oyster uses to make pearls.  The oyster secretes calcite layers that covers the irritation produce by a microscopic grain of sand in its shell.  That substance slowly builds and forms in the oyster to produce a beautiful pearl.  Sand is a substance that is very hard and contains silica.  It is used in the production of glass.  It is also very abundant.  The first mention of sand in the Bible is in Genesis 22:17 here.  It is used to compare to the number of children of Abraham.

Sand in our life represent the trials, crosses, problems and other things that God allows in our life.  Like sand, at times these problems can be very numerous.  But we are like the oyster as Christians.  The new creature in Jesus Christ is able to secrete a substance that allows us to deal with the irritation. That substance is the balm of Gilead, the comfort of the Holy Ghost.  Much like the oyster, the substance begins to cover the irritation of the sand and produce a smooth, beautiful pearl.  The one pearl that Christ refers to here in Matthew 13 is the church.

Trials in our lives are painful, however God is trying to make pearls.  We focus on the sand.  God focuses on the pearls.  Ultimately the pearl totally covers the sand.  We need to rejoice in the working of the Holy Ghost in our heart as He produces the fruit of the Spirit.  Love, joy and peace overcome or build up on top of the irritations of life until no one sees them in a good Christian.  As Paul, we will begin to rejoice or glory in tribulation once we see this.  God wants to produce some beautiful pearls of great price in your life.  The question is will you let Him?  If not, that sand is going to end up cutting you and destroying you.