Seeing the Beauty

 

“Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.”  Albert Camus

 There are times that I wish that I was either a gifted painter or at least a talented photographer. That’s because autumn is my favorite time of year and I’d love to be able to capture its beauty. While I love it when the grass begins popping out and the flowers begin to bloom, I just love the fall. 

  It’s been a late fall this year, but to me, it’s been particularly beautiful. As I drive home, my route makes a path through a splendor of changing leaves. It nearly breathtaking, it’s so captivating.  

  Our Heavenly Father is truly the master artist! Yet, sadly, there is so much ugliness in our world that I’m frequently guilty of missing out on His masterpieces. If I’m not working to control my mental diet, I focus on what’s wrong, what’s hideous in our world rather than all of the beauty.

  It lines up with the old saying, “you are what you eat.” God’s Word teaches that you are what you think. Philippians 4:8 challenges us to, “fix your thoughts on what is true and good and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely, and dwell on the fine, good things in others. Think about all you can praise God for and be glad about.” So here are some beautiful things that I like to think about.

  The colors of fall. Autumn is nearly breathtakingly beautiful during those few weeks when the leaves still remain on the trees and are turning from green to vibrant reds, pinks and yellows. My commute takes me along country roads where I’m overwhelmed with a myriad of colors. I have to remind myself to praise God for it. And I’m thankful for the beauty of fall even though it precedes the chill of winter.

  Smiles. There’s a young man who is apparently mentally challenged, yet he has the most wonderful smile at a local store. Every time I see him that smile gives me such a warm feeling.

  There are many things that I love about church on Sundays. Yet, as I prepare to come to our services there is one thing that I probably look forward to more than anything else, the smiling faces. The joy filled faces of my spiritual family so encourages me.

  My experience is that when I’m out and about, I don’t see very many smiling faces. Most are sober. Some even look annoyed or irritated.  Because of the cultural plague of misery, I seek to follow Dolly Parton’s advice, “If you see someone without a smile, give them one of yours.”

  Smiles are so attractive and they’re free. I hope I’m sharing mine so others can experience the wonderful beauty of a smile. Something about a smile can change your outlook. It lightens your load a bit and can even put a spring in your step.  

  Friends. Oprah was right, “Lots of people want to ride with you in the limo, but what you want is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks down.” I’ve got so many friends like that. They’re with me when I’m on the mountaintop and they’re with me as I walk through the valley. Thankfully most of them are so much more than friends, they’re brothers and sisters in Christ. We’re not just traveling this world’s road together. We’re headed to the same Home. God has blessed me with them and they’re a continual source of joy for me!

  Smells. My wife has taught me to love the smell (and feel) of clean sheets. Jane finds joy in the seemingly little things, things like “clean sheets.” Her enjoyment about the seemingly insignificant is contagious. And she’s taught me – there is something beautiful about the freshness of clean sheets and so many other things that I can overlook.

  For example, I love walking into a home where they’re baking bread. It smells so delicious, I can nearly taste it. And I’d be remiss to fail to share that one of the things that I absolutely love about our community is that on certain days you can smell the chocolate from Nestle’s. It’s like a cup of hot cocoa for your nose.

  Reading my Bible. Every morning before I start my day, I check an app on my phone that has five psalms that correspond with the date. It’s helped me become more familiar with the psalms. I usually read two or three before I launch my day.

  Then, later in the morning I’ll spend a longer period reading my Bible. It’s such a comfort to me. I’m sure that some of the preciousness comes from having an estranged relationship with my own Dad. Reading my Heavenly Father’s love letter to me and mediating on His promises brings a sense of peace and calm in my soul. It is truly beautiful.

  Prayer. Every day I pray for my family. Every day as a pastor, I have the privilege of praying for those in our church family. Yet often I feel so heavy hearted for some in church. I love our church. I love you! Sometimes watching those in our church family struggle weighs heavily on my heart.

  If you’ve been around Grace very long, then you know that we break the church family up into Care Groups for our Deacons. I use those groups as a guide for part of my prayer time. It helps me pray for everyone in our church family at least once on a weekly basis.
  There are some with struggles that I wish I was a genie and could pop in and solve them. There are burdens that some carry that I don’t understand and don’t have a solution. There are some who attend that it seems that they haven’t yet met Jesus as their Savior. There are others that are struggling to make Him Lord of their lives. Then, I pray for the children in our church and try to remember the names and pray for the adult children of our families. Prayer is beautiful to me because though I have so few solutions, I entrust the burdens to my Father who’s got it all under control.

  We’re never without beauty in this world, never without displays of splendor. We’re never without beauty because God’s divine fingerprints are all over all that He has made. Our problem is not a lack of beauty, it’s a lack of our seeing the beauty that our Heavenly Father has given us!

  I love this reality – if heaven is so beautiful on this side, how beyond words beautiful it must be on the other side. 

Can we help you spiritually? Can we help you know Jesus better? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or, call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address.