Do you ever think about beauty? What do you think is lovely or beautiful? From paintings to poetry, automobiles to furniture, from fabric and clothing to make up and nail color choices. Just think about it.
In the early 80's, when my friend gave birth to her boys, she told me how happy she was that Princess Diana had also given birth to boys. That seemed to bring back attractive baby clothes for boys.
A couple of years ago, I needed something dressy to wear to an event. I remember thinking, as I shopped: 'why do the sales people all wear varying forms of black?' They wore basic black clothing, to sell me, what I hoped would be lovely clothing. Of course, what the store had to offer wasn't much better than the garments they wore, and worse: they didn't seem to care!
What had happened to lovely color and added fabric texture for interest? This year, thankfully on the clothing front, there was yet another royal wedding this year, and this is reflected in our choices this season where we find and an air of romantic lace, and colors that are pleasing to the eye...much texture and more colors...prettier ...but not yet beautiful.
We experience bland costuming in movies and characters on TV. Go and visit an art museum...look for lovely and beautiful. Or, take a walk down any toy aisle...putting some of those toys in the hands of a little person...seems like it would be a truly terrifying image for them...faces of little dolls or stuffed animals/dolls are so scary--nothing on earth looks like that, why do their toys have to? (Now, I sound like my sweet grandma and showing my age, however, I do think I am justified in my concern)
What happened to valuing human dignity, and honoring one another as humans, created in the Image of God? What happened to striving to becoming the very best version of ourselves? Or encouraging and doing everything in our power to bring out the best in those around us?
Have we become so secularized, as Christians, that we've failed to recognize the truly ugly around us? Just wondering...here in this life, if we constantly allow ourselves to be bombarded with 'ugly images' will we, in the long run, diminish our ability to appreciate and imagine things that are lovely and beautiful? (if this is possible, what a wonderful weapon our enemy holds against us)
When I imagine the "Glory of the Lord filling the temple?" OR, "Heavenly Light?" to what are my earthly eyes comparing those to...the things that I have seen? OR worse, what will my grandchildren imagine when they hopefully contemplate these images?
Remember? We are told exactly how to handle this, what to do as we face the 'ugliness of images' placed before us, in stores, on TV or other media...notice I did not say in nature...for the things we think about, the things to dwell on are these:
..."Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things." Philippians 4:8
Join me in writing out a list of the things we consider to be true, or honorable, or right, or pure or lovely, things of good repute, excellent and praise worthy. What a 'good gift' to give our children...something of true beauty for them to dwell on...but also of importance, this exercise will help each of us to think and consider the images around us, and what they do to our thought life, our attitude, and the value we place on the things of God. Just think about it.
In the early 80's, when my friend gave birth to her boys, she told me how happy she was that Princess Diana had also given birth to boys. That seemed to bring back attractive baby clothes for boys.
A couple of years ago, I needed something dressy to wear to an event. I remember thinking, as I shopped: 'why do the sales people all wear varying forms of black?' They wore basic black clothing, to sell me, what I hoped would be lovely clothing. Of course, what the store had to offer wasn't much better than the garments they wore, and worse: they didn't seem to care!
What had happened to lovely color and added fabric texture for interest? This year, thankfully on the clothing front, there was yet another royal wedding this year, and this is reflected in our choices this season where we find and an air of romantic lace, and colors that are pleasing to the eye...much texture and more colors...prettier ...but not yet beautiful.
We experience bland costuming in movies and characters on TV. Go and visit an art museum...look for lovely and beautiful. Or, take a walk down any toy aisle...putting some of those toys in the hands of a little person...seems like it would be a truly terrifying image for them...faces of little dolls or stuffed animals/dolls are so scary--nothing on earth looks like that, why do their toys have to? (Now, I sound like my sweet grandma and showing my age, however, I do think I am justified in my concern)
What happened to valuing human dignity, and honoring one another as humans, created in the Image of God? What happened to striving to becoming the very best version of ourselves? Or encouraging and doing everything in our power to bring out the best in those around us?
Have we become so secularized, as Christians, that we've failed to recognize the truly ugly around us? Just wondering...here in this life, if we constantly allow ourselves to be bombarded with 'ugly images' will we, in the long run, diminish our ability to appreciate and imagine things that are lovely and beautiful? (if this is possible, what a wonderful weapon our enemy holds against us)
When I imagine the "Glory of the Lord filling the temple?" OR, "Heavenly Light?" to what are my earthly eyes comparing those to...the things that I have seen? OR worse, what will my grandchildren imagine when they hopefully contemplate these images?
Remember? We are told exactly how to handle this, what to do as we face the 'ugliness of images' placed before us, in stores, on TV or other media...notice I did not say in nature...for the things we think about, the things to dwell on are these:
..."Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things." Philippians 4:8
Join me in writing out a list of the things we consider to be true, or honorable, or right, or pure or lovely, things of good repute, excellent and praise worthy. What a 'good gift' to give our children...something of true beauty for them to dwell on...but also of importance, this exercise will help each of us to think and consider the images around us, and what they do to our thought life, our attitude, and the value we place on the things of God. Just think about it.
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