Sometimes, and sometimes frequently, I catch a glimpse of sunlight from the kitchen window on the counter top and almost catch my breath at the beauty of such an ordinary sight. It’s not only this, but other common sights around the house and yard, and even neighborhood. Familiar objects strike a chord with their beauty. I used to dismiss such things, but now I think that they counteract some of the dreadful news we often hear that showcases dismaying conflict and evils in the world. I dismissed the feeling of beauty as an escape response, but now I think it is a lift of the veil of earthly wrong to glimpse the life of God in our midst. It reverses the sense of emptiness at the current events we are powerless to change.

In his Spiritual Diaries, Pope John Paul II wrote, “This feeling of beauty is a type of fulfillment of Christian prayer, through which the world becomes an epiphany of God.” Beauty in any form, but especially in nature, is a reflection of its creator. The sense of beauty delights and elevates us with a perception of grace on earth. The psalmist declared, One thing I ask from the Lord, the one only do I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple. (psalm 27:4)

Beauty is one of the strongest hallmarks of the presence o God. When we begin to see beauty where we never saw it before, it is a spiritual shift that echos the beauty of the Lord. The psalmist as well as other Biblical writers knew this experience. Jesus himself read from Isaiah when revealing to his people his real identity: The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, . . . to provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning. . . (Isaiah 61:1&3)

Our front door has a panel of beveled glass that catches the morning sunlight and splashes rainbows around the living room floor and walls. When I see the rainbows I experience the oil of joy, for they remind me of the beauty of the one who loved us enough to ensure our salvation. There are endless times when beauty works for our God to convey His presence. We have only to “ask, seek, and knock” to find and experience His beauty. (Matthew 7:7)

Love in Him,

Prue