The Beauty All Around

Fiver and I were out for our morning walk alongside the golf course next door to our neighborhood yesterday, when we heard the familiar whine of a couple of electric golf carts pulling up next to us.  The first cart had a two ladies in the front seat who just couldn’t seem to stop staring at Fiver!  As we neared their position, one of the gals finally said with great expression in her voice, “Oh, what a beautiful dog!” and the other lady simply nodded her head in agreement, as they continued to look at him.  I smiled and thanked them and we continued on our way!

When we were about ten feet past them, I suddenly had to stop and think about their comment and the revelation of how God has always surrounded me with beauty.  When we continued on our walk, I began to make a mental list of all the beautiful things that I have experienced in my life, starting with a wonderful childhood, loving parents, great siblings and a very close-knit extended family of Italian heritage.

When we turned the corner and entered the park and the far end of our walk and headed for the pond, I continued my list and thought… “and it only got better from there!”  In the middle of high school, I met the most beautiful and wonderful person, both inside and out, who would become my life-long partner, the Mom to our beautiful children, and the purveyor of so many beautiful memories in my life that if I listed them all… well… I’d be writing about them for months!

I think about all the beautiful families and individuals that we got to meet and have the honor of ministering to throughout the years, the beautiful places that we got to visit, the beautiful things we had to enjoy… and YES… I would even have to include some of the gorgeous cars we owned, for Piper and I both had an attraction to hot cars and worshipped a God who knows our desires even better than us and enjoys giving us special things! 

Along with Fiver, I also remember the other beautiful pets we’ve had, the places we’ve lived (I remember Piper praying early on that we would always have a nice house to live in) and the beautiful Christian fellowships that we got to worship with and in!  Some of those churches may not have been housed in the fanciest of buildings, but the praise, worship and fellowship was beautiful beyond measure.

Have you taken the time to think about all the beauty that the Lord has surrounded you with in your lifetime?  The beginning of Ephesians 2:10 in The Passion Translation states that “We have become his poetry…”  Think about that for a moment.  God the Father thinks of you as a beautiful sonnet, a poem declaring how beautiful you are to Him.  He sees you and I as living in step and in rhythm with Him and the plans that He has for us.

Ephesians 2:10 continues by saying that we are, “a re-created people that will fulfill the destiny he has given each of us, for we are joined to Jesus, the Anointed One. Even before we were born, God planned in advance our destiny and the good works we would do to fulfill it!”   And all along the particular paths that He has designed for you to take in this life, He has populated it with the beauty of His creation… just for you and I to enjoy!

I realized on that walk yesterday, that even in the midst of the hardest of the hard times that came along the way in Piper’s and my life together, that there were still glimpses of His grace and displays of His beauty all around us… all along the way!  I’ve learned that as we continue to keep our faith, our expectations, our love, our peace and our joy focused on Him… especially in the tough times, that we’ll still experience His beauty… even when things in the natural seem to have gone from bad to worse!  

I’ve heard it said that the night is darkest right before the dawn… and I’ve learned the importance of keeping a constant lookout for the light of His love and the light His beauty that always comes through. His light and that beauty always seems to pop out into view… many times… when you least expect it!  Always remember God’s promise to you in Psalm 91:15 where He unequivocally declares to both you and me that, “I will answer your cry for help every time you pray, and you will (always) find and feel my presence even in your time of pressure and trouble. I will be your glorious hero and give you a feast.” (The Passion Translation)

So, if I might be so bold… I highly encourage you TODAY, to take a few moments away from your busy schedule and consider all the beauty that the Lord is surrounding you with today!  I would even go so far as to suggest that you write it down and tape the list to the front door of your refrigerator!  This way you’ll see it every day and have opportunity to add to the list every time you recall another wonder of His creation or experience new and fresh expressions of His beauty that comes along your way in life!

Isn’t God Good?  Just look around and I think you’ll answer with me… a resounding YES, HE IS!