The other day, one of my kids’ friends said, “Your mom’s treats aren’t the prettiest, but they taste the best!” It’s true. Most of the time, my presentation could use a little work. But I promise you, I won’t offer you anything that hasn’t passed the “picky palate” test. If it’s not rich and delicious, it won’t make it to anyone else’s tastebuds.
Isn’t that true in life, too? We appreciate beauty, but what we really want is depth. At our core, we value meaning and richness in our experiences, our relationships. We want our existence to matter at a deeper level that will have impact on others and our world.
God has the same idea. He sees not only our outward appearance, but our inner value and worth. Our hearts. That’s why everything He shares with us in the bible speaks about and to our hearts. That place where our thoughts and attitudes and personalities come from. The place that makes us, “us”.
Everything that He offers us is to bring and health and beauty and depth to our hearts. That’s why He wants to reside there. Because He is the source of everything good and rich and meaningful. He is love. And anything worth growing in our hearts comes from that love. From God Himself.
I try to eat right and exercise to maintain my outward appearance. But in the scheme of things, I am more concerned with my heart and maintaining its health and beauty. My body is a temple – a place where worship happens, not a place to be worshipped. It only houses the thing that really matters. The thing that loves God and others and gives life its meaning.
1 Samuel 16:7 – But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”
1 Peter 3:3-4 – Let your beauty not be external – the braiding of hair and wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes – but the inner person of the heart, the lasting beauty of a gentle and tranquil spirit, which is precious in the God’s sight.
Proverbs 4:23 – Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.
(And speaking of not-so-pretty-on-the-outside but yummy on the inside – try this for a fall treat…)
Trailer Mix
2 cups dry roasted peanuts
2 cups Brach’s candy corn (only use Brach’s – anything else is just a cheap imitation and not near as good!)
Mix it all up and put it in a bowl on the counter. And it will very quickly disappear. Is it ugly? Yeah. But is it good? Think PayDay bar…..Yeah. 🙂
