Beauty.

Today I was eating peanuts. I don't do this very often, but for some reason I pulled out that bag and began taking apart the shells and eating the delicious insides. I got a peanut shell that held THREE PEANUTS. When I was younger, this was THE thing. To get a shell that contained THREE peanuts? Well, that was a mini-miracle. I smiled to myself as I remembered this childhood excitement and then my thoughts were led to a similar topic...

Beauty, magnificence, simplicity v. the outrageous. So often in today's society we are not amazed until something HUGE happens. We have become (in general) so apathetic that it takes something mind-blowing and really spectacular to grab our attention. And this to me, is sad.
Psalm 50:2 says "Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God shines forth." Therefore, God's beauty is everywhere. He shines forth, at all times, PERFECT beauty. Why does it take a four-leaf clover to make us excited? Why does it take dolphins flipping out of the ocean to make us gasp for breath? Should we not be amazed at the simple things as well? What about the blades of grass that surround the four-leaf clover, aren't they also just as intricate and beautiful? And what about the vast ocean that contains the dolphins? Isn't how much life the ocean holds amazing? Or what about a smile on the face of a child, or the aged? What about the baby kitten? So many things around us are BREATHTAKINGLY beautiful, we must only close our eyes and open our heart to see it. I'm guilty of this as well. I do not appreciate the beautiful world God has created nearly enough. But I'm praying that I can start.

Have you ever noticed something entirely breathtaking, yet utterly simple at the same time? Has God's beautiful world ever made you stop and think? Stop and stare? Stop and love?

"One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to inquire in his temple." Psalm 27:4

(Note: Both Bible verses are taken from the English Standard Version)