Beautiful People

It probably comes as no surprise to learn that people who are attractive by social norms enjoy many advantages in life. They are generally perceived as being more intelligent, healthier, and happier. This one really surprised me - pretty people are considered more trustworthy and honest! Organizations led by people, men and women, who are physically attractive generally are more profitable over time. Studies prove that  attractive individuals are more likely to be hired, promoted and receive higher salaries.  Apparently we are, in spite of all our advances in knowledge, still owned by basic biology! 

While we do not all get to be ‘pretty’ we can become beautiful people! That’s a hopeful word for me. How about you?

Jesus, announcing His ministry as the Savior/Redeemer, used words of promise from Isaiah. "The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion— to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor." (Isaiah 61:1-3, NIV)  How I love that promise! The bruised, the broken, the downtrodden, the ignored, the unlovely - find new hope in their Savior Who makes them truly beautiful from the inside out.

Unlike us, God is not impressed by a pretty face. Remember the story of the selection of David to become king of Israel? The preacher, Samuel, was directed by the Spirit to the home of Jesse. When he saw the first-born son, Eliab, he was immediately impressed and thought “Surely this is God’s anointed one!”  The Spirit then told him “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn’t make decisions the way you do! People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at a person’s thoughts and intentions. (*the heart!)” (1 Samuel 16:7, NLT)  David, the youngest son was nearly overlooked by his family and the prophet, but not by the Lord God who knew him.

Jesus, in the Beatitudes, spoke of a beautiful life in terms that are at complete odds with our natural way of thinking. He said that the poor, the mourner, the meek could enjoy the full favor of God’s blessings! In another passage, He promised that in God’s kingdom ‘the first will be last.’  Those who live full of themselves, proud of their status and full of Self-confidence, miss out on the beauty that God creates in those who are humble, who love the things of the Spirit, who are changed into persons in whom is found the ‘display of His splendor.’

Has your soul been broken by hate? 
Have you been abused, misused, or ignored leaving you without hope in life? 
Does regret for the past turn you inward, casting a shadow over you that hides joy?
Does fear hold you captive, causing you to live behind walls?

There is a Savior who loves you!  When we trust Him, giving ourselves to Him, He makes us whole again and gives us a kind of inner beauty that is unrelated to our body symmetry or how others see our face! Bow your head and invite Him to remake you from the inside out.  This Word will become your word - you will be "known for the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God." (1 Peter 3:4, NLT)

Here is the word from the Word. I pray we will allow Him to make us the kind of people known not for a pretty face but a beautiful heart! "Now, the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, he gives freedom. And all of us have had that veil removed so that we can be mirrors that brightly reflect the glory of the Lord. And as the Spirit of the Lord works within us, we become more and more like him and reflect his glory even more." (2 Corinthians 3:17-18, NLT)

(Video of this blog at this link)

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Beautiful Things

All this pain

I wonder if I'll ever find my way

I wonder if my life could really change

At all

 

All this earth

Could all that is lost ever be found

Could a garden come up from this ground

At all

 

You make beautiful things

You make beautiful things out of the dust

You make beautiful things

You make beautiful things out of us

 

Hope is springing up from this old ground

Out of chaos life is being found

In You

 

You make me new You are making me new

You make me new You are making me new

 

Lisa Gungor | Michael Gungor

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