THE BEAUTY OF JEHOVAH

«One thing I have desired of the Lord, that will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in His temple» (Psalm 27:4).

Sometimes, in the desire to correct the tendency to idolize appearance, we completely demean the importance of our body and our physical beauty. While it is true that a person’s character is extremely important, we are not spirits trapped in a kind of shell. The dualistic idea that the body (including its appearance) is bad and dangerous, and the spirit is good and holy is not biblical. In fact, this is a heresy introduced into Christianity by Gnostics. God designed Adam and Eve with bodies capable of distinguishing colors, flavors, fragrances, sounds, and textures. In case there was any doubt about His intentions, God surrounded the first couple with an exotic and overflowing natural beauty. Imagine the attraction Adam must have felt when he looked at Eve for the first time God deliberately planned that! That we enjoy beauty is not a mistake or an accident. God designed us like this on purpose!

The physical beauty we receive and the attraction we are able to feel are gifts from God. There’s nothing wrong with them. We have a problem only when these gifts take on a disproportionate dimension. As happens with money, intelligence, or power, the problem is not the gifts, but the role we allow them to play in our lives. As powerful as it may be, physical beauty is just a faint reflection of God’s beauty. It is like an illuminated sign, like an arrow pointing toward the eternal and incorruptible beauty of our Creator. David understood this clearly, so he prayed that he would be allowed to «behold the beauty of the Lord» (Psalm 27:4). David did not pray to see less beauty, but more. He understood that the secret was in looking where the arrow pointed.

The secret is to behold the beauty of the One who puts all other beauty into perspective. This beauty «has the power to free our hearts from the clutches of moral and spiritual ugliness,» Sam Storms wrote in One Thing, and «forges in us an affection that no other earthly power can overcome.»

Dear Lord, thank you for creating beauty and attraction because everything beautiful has Your stamp on it. Help me see the beauty of Your grace and love so that all other beauty may be in perspective.

#WomensDevotional
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Take From: Devotional Thoughts for Women 2022
«NO FEARS»
BY: VANEZA PISSUTO
Collaborators: Alexandra Pérez & Angelica Cuate.