Finding Beauty

“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” is a very familiar saying. If we think about that saying for just a moment, it seems to suggest that there are two parts to beauty: the ones trying to make themselves beautiful and the ones who judge the outcome.

The latest information on the amount of money that is spent on beauty enhancing items is staggering:

Total cost of products worldwide: $426 billion.
Total cost in America: $33.3 billion.
Total cost per person in America: $15,000.

Some might say, “What a complete waste.” Someone else would probably say, “They should have spent much more.” And a third might say, “It didn’t make any difference no matter what they spent, so what’s the reason for spending the money to look better? Why the effort?”

But the Psalmist said, “He crowns, and beautifies, the humble with salvation.”

God can take a heart that is stained and soiled with sin and cleanse it from all impurities and make it beautiful. “Wash me,” cried one Psalmist, “and I will be whiter than snow.”

God can take the damage caused by sin, and the marks left from discouragement and depression and erase their marks, remove every tear and bring hope to our eyes, erase lines of guilt and put the joy of salvation on our faces. Jesus made an important promise when He said, “My peace I give unto you - not as the world gives peace” through false promises, and praise.

God can take a sin-scarred life and fill it with His glory and radiance. "Set me free from my prison," said the Psalmist. And we respond, “Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me!”

Prayer: Only You, Father, can save us from sin, ourselves and the insanity of this world. Come quickly and help us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Psalm 149:4b He crowns, and beautifies, the humble with salvation. 

Finding Beauty

“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” is a very familiar saying. If we think about that saying for just a moment, it seems to suggest that there are two parts to beauty: the ones trying to make themselves beautiful and the ones who judge the outcome.

The latest information on the amount of money that is spent on beauty enhancing items is staggering:

Total cost of products worldwide: $426 billion.
Total cost in America: $33.3 billion.
Total cost per person in America: $15,000.

Some might say, “What a complete waste.” Someone else would probably say, “They should have spent much more.” And a third might say, “It didn’t make any difference no matter what they spent, so what’s the reason for spending the money to look better? Why the effort?”

But the Psalmist said, “He crowns, and beautifies, the humble with salvation.”

God can take a heart that is stained and soiled with sin and cleanse it from all impurities and make it beautiful. “Wash me,” cried one Psalmist, “and I will be whiter than snow.”

God can take the damage caused by sin, and the marks left from discouragement and depression and erase their marks, remove every tear and bring hope to our eyes, erase lines of guilt and put the joy of salvation on our faces. Jesus made an important promise when He said, “My peace I give unto you - not as the world gives peace” through false promises, and praise.

God can take a sin-scarred life and fill it with His glory and radiance. "Set me free from my prison," said the Psalmist. And we respond, “Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me!”

Prayer: Only You, Father, can save us from sin, ourselves and the insanity of this world. Come quickly and help us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Psalm 149:4b He crowns, and beautifies, the humble with salvation. 

Delighting God!

The word “delight” is often a disarming word. Why? What might delight me would not delight you. It’s a word that is in one sense personal, but in another way, universal. It always implies that something has happened to bring joy or satisfaction to another. Or, when used in the Bible, it brings great pleasure to God.

The Psalmist wrote: “The Lord takes great delight in His people.” Not all people or certain people or educated people or even wise people. He only takes delight in His people. Notice, also, that it is more than mere delight, it is a great delight.

So the question we must ask ourselves is this: “Who are His people?” Does God have favorites? Are there some people whom God loves more than others? Can anything be done to become one of His people that bring Him great delight? How can we get into that “inner circle” who are recognized as “His people?”

When this verse was written, however, “His people” were those who were in a covenant relationship with Him. The verses that precede this verse describe people who, in particular, are praising the Lord. They are singing and dancing and making music by playing harps and tambourines - all signs of joyful worship to their God.

However, today we know that we are “saved by faith” through the New Covenant that He established through His Son. Faith in Christ is the first step if we want to become one of “His” people and enter into his Kingdom. To do so, we must accept His Son as our Savior.

Worship signifies humility – bowing down before God our Creator and Lord. Only humble people are willing to accept Christ and worship the Lord. His people are humble people.

Prayer: Lord, true worship means that we bow down before You - and only You - in humility and surrender. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Psalm 149:4a The Lord takes great delight in His people.

Delighting God!

The word “delight” is often a disarming word. Why? What might delight me would not delight you. It’s a word that is in one sense personal, but in another way, universal. It always implies that something has happened to bring joy or satisfaction to another. Or, when used in the Bible, it brings great pleasure to God.

The Psalmist wrote: “The Lord takes great delight in His people.” Not all people or certain people or educated people or even wise people. He only takes delight in His people. Notice, also, that it is more than mere delight, it is a great delight.

So the question we must ask ourselves is this: “Who are His people?” Does God have favorites? Are there some people whom God loves more than others? Can anything be done to become one of His people that bring Him great delight? How can we get into that “inner circle” who are recognized as “His people?”

When this verse was written, however, “His people” were those who were in a covenant relationship with Him. The verses that precede this verse describe people who, in particular, are praising the Lord. They are singing and dancing and making music by playing harps and tambourines - all signs of joyful worship to their God.

However, today we know that we are “saved by faith” through the New Covenant that He established through His Son. Faith in Christ is the first step if we want to become one of “His” people and enter into his Kingdom. To do so, we must accept His Son as our Savior.

Worship signifies humility – bowing down before God our Creator and Lord. Only humble people are willing to accept Christ and worship the Lord. His people are humble people.

Prayer: Lord, true worship means that we bow down before You - and only You - in humility and surrender. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Psalm 149:4a The Lord takes great delight in His people.

Singing A New Song

It is not possible to overestimate the significance of the Psalms. In them, we find the ideals of a God-filled life that reflect humility, worship, dependence and service. In them, we find descriptions of men whose lives were in constant communion with God. We also find lives that reflect deep sorrow for sin and the search for holiness and perfection. We discover what walking in darkness is like - without fear gripping our hearts and controlling our minds because we see “faith at work.” We are confronted with the results of sin and the benefits of repentance, restoration, and righteousness. We see minds once tortured by guilt and shame restored to sanity by the grace and mercy of God as a result of His love. We see the beauty of God’s love in comparison to the tragedy of evil and wickedness. We see deep serenity following the storms of fear and danger.

More than any other book in the Bible, we see the tragic effects of sin in first-person stories. We also see what God can do for those who fall before Him and ask for His forgiveness. We see the roller-coaster of life ending in smooth seas of God’s peace for those who submit to and worship Him.

In the wisdom of God, His Spirit inspired the writers of the Psalms to take the experiences of men, who were as human as we are and give us a compass for life. The Psalms provide us with spiritual insight, wisdom, knowledge, and courage to deal with every issue of life.

We read in Psalm 149 that we are to “sing a new song.”

How is this possible when life is falling apart? Can there be any new songs?

Yes! “His mercies never cease!” New day! New Mercies! New songs!

Prayer: Father, make us aware of the unending mercies we receive every day. Fill our hearts with new songs of joy. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Psalm 149:1 Praise the Lord! Sing a new song to the Lord!