Noticing the Beauty

 

“One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.” *

When pumpkins were selling in early October, the ones that really caught my eye were the unusual ones—those that were very small, or colored with green, orange and yellow stripes, or the odd-shaped pumpkins.

However, wherever we went, the price seemed pretty steep, so I held off from buying one. When Halloween had passed and the “Pumpkin Patch” sponsored by our church was finished for the year, all of the left-over pumpkins were being given away one Sunday morning.

I spotted the perfect one, well not perfect, but interesting! It was large, heavy, light orange in color and covered with brown bumps that looked like barnacles, according to Al! Or peanuts in the shell!

The ladies who were in charge of the pumpkin giveaway were happy that I had chosen that one.

 “I kept hoping that someone would take it from the pumpkin patch, but nobody wanted it,” said one of the ladies. When I handed her a donation, she told me it was free.

“Oh, but I’d like to make the donation anyway,” I said, since all of the money collected was being used to help folks in need.

My original idea of having the pumpkin on the front porch until Thanksgiving was thwarted after putting it out one afternoon and finding a couple of big bites in it the next day! Evidently the squirrels didn’t mind the barnacles! 

The unusual pumpkin has been out in the sunroom ever since then and is still in good shape; but now that Christmas is approaching, it’s time to put it outside for the squirrels to enjoy once more.

Although not beautiful, it provided a glimpse of God’s creative handiwork, reminding me  that beauty isn’t necessarily perfection, nor is it always connected to outward appearances.

Beauty really is “in the eye of the beholder,” as the often-quoted saying goes. The question is, do we have eyes to behold it?

 I was happy to see our youngest grandson take out his cell phone in order to capture a beautiful sunset one evening with the camera. How nice that he is appreciating the beauty of sunsets!

Sunsets, sunrises, rainbows and amazing cloud formations, Canada geese flying overhead in formation, red cardinals standing out against stark bare branches, evergreens providing color in the winter landscape… there are many times that the beauty of God’s creative handiwork in nature causes me to stop and stare in awe.

More? I find beauty in places of worship through the surroundings, the music of choirs and musicians, and messages from the Bible. Even the sounds of Christmas carols played in the stores, Salvation Army bells ringing and the voices of people calling out “God bless you” or “Merry Christmas” are joyful to hear.

Beauty is seen in the joy on children’s faces as they experience the 1-cent pony ride at the supermarket; or in their expressions of wonder as they watch the enactment of the Christmas story, when there is a real baby “Jesus” sleeping in a home-made manger, surrounded by “Mary,” “Joseph,” shepherds, sheep, a donkey or two, angels with tinsel halos, wise men and sometimes even a child dressed as the miraculous star the wise men saw from a faraway country.

Then there are the gifts from family and friends, many of whom are no longer with us, that bring back love-filled memories. Our skinny artificial Christmas tree, with its bright lights and unique ornaments is also a thing of beauty in the eye of this beholder.

The message of Christmas, of God’s incomprehensible love manifested in a baby, His Son, Jesus, brings feelings of joy and gratitude. What beauty the Christmas story holds… of Mary’s faith, Joseph’s obedience, of the perfect timing of events, the awe of the shepherds and Magi from the east upon seeing the baby Jesus, and the joy of angels heralding His birth!

And what beauty is found in God’s Word, in His promises, in the love He has for all people and in the hope of one day seeing Him face to face! May our eyes be opened to behold God’s beauty around us each day. He loves us!

Merry Christmas!

*Psalm 27:4 NIV