A Work of Art

So many times when I'm holding Percy, I tell him he's a little work of art. And he is. But, as I told him that this morning, I entered into a deeper awareness of the fact that you and I, too, are works of art, created by a Master Designer, Who makes no mistakes and Who is the Auther of beauty...beauty as defined by Him, not us. (That's another whole post all by itself! His definition of so many things as compared to how we define certain things)

But, you may be like me in the regard of not thinking of yourself as beautiful, cute, pretty or whatever term is most appealing to you. If you know me well, there are some who have referred to me as cute, pretty, etc., but I always think, 'Oh, they just like or love me, so that's why they think that.' Yet, I would tell you that (y)our outer beauty is so connected to (y)our inner beauty.

I remember in my very first office job, there was a lady that was quite striking in appearance. She always looked 'just so.' So, especially being in my early 20's, I was rather intimidated by her. Well, one night her team bowled against my team. (Yes, we were both on the company bowling league. Do they even do that anymore?) She kept score and so did I. Well, long story short, I was rather UNimpressed by her at the end of the evening and decided looks aren't everything! On the flip side of the coin, there was (same company) a little gal who worked in the section behind me. Now, at that point in time, we all had scheduled break times, so I'd see her every day walking with her friends on their way to the cafeteria. I always thought to myself, 'That is one of the homeliest girls I've ever seen.' Well, some time after that, I got to know her and what a delight she was! She had such a cute personality, she became cute in my eyes instead of homely.

This has been quite a detour, but, all this to say that He designed each of us. He created us to be beautiful in His eyes. Now, I do believe He very well knows what we consider beautiful and what we consider downright ugly. We all know not everyone is beautiful or even cute. We've all seen some pretty ugly people, haven't we? Yet, anybody who knows Him can be transformed into one who is beautiful because He lives in us. Does that change our physical features? No, obviously, but I'm sure you've met or know certain people that at first glance are not too attractive. Then, you get to know them...even just a little bit...and you discover an inner beauty that arrests you! This reminds me of 2 Corinthians 4:6, that says, 'For God, who said, "Light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. 7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves.'

So, my friend, don't focus on your outer beauty or lack thereof. Let His beauty shine through you! Then you will be truly beautiful, inside and out.   <3