You see, 2018 & 2019 brought me face to face with the ugly in others and me. I was forced to recognize that although I had forgiven stuff I suffered in childhood, I was withholding forgiveness for present pains inflicted upon my family and me.
Forgiveness is beautiful. It’s the opposite of hate—which is ugly.
My key word for 2020 is beauty.
Beauty brings me closer to God when I focus on it. No matter what’s happening to and around us, beauty may be found if we intentionally seek it.
When Jesus hung on the cross—blood dripping, flesh ripping—he was the most beautiful person who ever lived and died in the moment He said, “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.”
Oh, my goodness. We have been forgiven too much not to turn the other cheek too. How can we not choose to forgive our enemies when we’re only here for a short few years compared to an eternity with Jesus in heaven? No matter what wounds we’ve suffered in this life, the Lord has promised us that our in-the-moment-sufferings aren’t worthy to be compared with the beauty that’s coming.
Yes, beauty means focusing on what’s to come and thereby allowing the beauty of the Lord to break through the ugly stuff happening around us. No, it doesn’t mean standing still while someone tosses shovelfuls of manure in our face. It means we don’t toss it back. We forgive instead of retaliate; so, perhaps then, the coals of conviction may burn away the ugliness of hate to reveal Christ’s redeeming beauty: Love.
And they were calling to one another:
"Holy, holy holy is the LORD Almighty;
the whole earth is full of his glory."
Isaiah 6:3 NIV
I’m nosy-to-know if you’ve recently noticed God’s beauty in the middle of the not-so-lovely?
Blessings of His beauty ~ Wendy Mac
