Satisfied by True Beauty

As a kid, I remember going outside, or playing in my room was the only way I could entertain myself. Everything we can access with a press of a button today – was not even invented. It’s easy to see that the younger generations of today don’t have the pleasure of a world without easy access to electronics. Now, when we need to recharge or find beauty and acceptance we quickly retreat to our phones and computers. I know I’ve fallen victim to this for so many years; especially as an introvert. At the end of a full day, I just want to binge the latest show on Netflix or see something beautiful on Instagram or Pinterest. 

During this internship, they asked we fast movies and social media as much as we can for this season of consecration. The reason for this being that they don’t want us to settle for Netflix and the beauty of Instagram when there is something so much better right before us. Yesterday during a small service the director of the internship shared a story about the Grand Canyon. 

For anyone who has been there, you know how stunning and beautiful it is; a gentleman I sat next to on my flight had recently visited and couldn’t stop talking about its beauty. Yet, right before you cross the road to the canyon there is a small coffee shop with Televisions inside; and people who choose to sit inside and watch. Even with the beauty that God created right in front of them, they still chose to let media satisfy their desire for beauty. How often do we do this with God?

We go through life – I’ve done this too – thinking we have time to be with God. In reality, time is the one thing we don’t have. We could die tomorrow, or we could die when we’re 70 years old; time is the one thing we can’t get back. Do you want to look back on life and see the time you gave to Netflix or see the time you gave to God? This question hit me where it hurt, I love recharging with Netflix, but I now realize it only numbs my desire for beauty and entertainment. God is standing before me, He can completely satisfy every need; I don’t want to sit in the coffee shop when the Grand Canyon is right outside.

Psalm 27:4 “One thing I ask from the Lord, this 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.”

David was in the midst of the worst season of his life; instead of sleeping, or hiding, or fighting he wanted to see the beauty of the Lord. David knew that the Lord’s beauty, being in the Lord’s presence, was the only thing that mattered. It was the one thing he asked, the only thing he wanted to seek. I want my life to reflect this, I want to someday stand before Jesus and know I gave everything I could in this life. Not only did I give my Sunday mornings, but I gave my nights when I could have watched Netflix; my mornings when I could have slept. Jesus didn’t die a brutal death on the cross to gain our Sunday afternoons – He died so we could be with Him forever. 

I won’t be perfect in this; I’m human. But I don’t want to slip into a mundane life where Netflix and Instagram satisfy me; I want what I was created for, to be satisfied by the beauty of my Creator.

I hope you’re challenged by this like I was; God truly desires our whole heart, not just half of it. He is a Father who longs and loves to be with His children; who deserves our adoration and love in return.

Thank you for reading. xx