Unveiling the Image of God through Beauty
Beauty - Unveiling the Image of God
The Gift of Beauty
When was the last time you made a deal with a tree in Autumn to get it to change it's colors?
Did it ask anything of you before offering it's beauty?
No, of course not.
Yet, every year (at least here in the Blue Ridge mountains of Virginia) the trees put on a show with colors that are beautiful!
There are no deals made.
No transactions.
No communication at all.
It's simply a faithful, glorious, and beautiful gift.
All without repayment.
It's all a gift.
An offering.
Whether it's acknowledged or not.
Beauty is gift.
It's offering without payment.
Consider the sun, moon, and stars that shine, asking nothing in return.
The oceans roar and crash their waves on the shore.
The mountains stand strong; unshakable heights that touch the clouds.
The clouds condescend to bring shade and rain.
The earth yields growth and bears fruit.
The flowers unfurl delicate and fragrant petals like silk.
And every day, in every city across the globe, since the beginning of time, the sun has risen and set, creating a piece of artwork in the heavens.
This is the essence of our God.
There is universally acknowledged beauty in the condescension of offering something valuable and asking nothing in return.
That's what creation does for us.
And, that's why when someone condescends to make a decision, denying actions that would be self-protective, in order to offer something for the good of another person
It's a sacrifice.
And, we call it beautiful.
We call it love.
Love is beautiful.
God's gifts to us are uncountable and immeasurable. His greatest and most self-sacrificing gift was Jesus. And Jesus' self-sacrifice on the cross was the greatest gift of all time.
This is beauty.
This is our God.
Our God is Beautiful!
I love this song by Rebecca St James and her brothers from For King and Country.
Check it out here on YouTube.
The piece below is called "In It's Time"
It includes a fragment of scripture from Ecclesiastes 3 where the writer reminds us that there is a season for everything under heaven.
Whatever season you find yourself in, I hope that this truth gives you encouragement and hope; that God is beautiful and is at work making all things beautiful, in it's time.
Let's join Him in this glorious work and making things beautiful.
Blessings,
Melissa
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