thoughts ... Meditations for Spiritual Living

Podcast beauty ...

I saw beauty in the glow of a mother holding her newborn baby. The way the sun shines through new spring leaves. The way your feet feel dangling in the water at the lake. The cool mist of rain on a hot day. The still of an early morning walk in the woods. In rainy days, that smell like the ocean. The smell of sun tan lotion which reminds me of my mother. Mountains, receding into the haze. A lone bird, calling on a chilly morning. People, holding hands. A gentle kiss. A smile. The feel of wet grass under your feet. A kind act. Hearing just the right words at just the right time. Bellowing laughter. A stream of sunlight through the clouds. A rainbow. People, greeting one another with hugs. A babies first words. The sound of ocean waves. Rain on a tin roof. Fresh sheets. The fulfillment of hope. A wave of peace flowing through your body. Realizing someone loves you.

There is beauty everywhere. How often during the day do you look for or recognize the beauty in things? The things that bring a little smile to your face. That lighten your spirit. That bring a little healing. That for a moment clear your mind. That bring some light to your eyes. That give you a little hope. Things that make you breathe deeply. Things that release a little tension and brighten your day. Things that make you shed a tear of hope during the rough times. The things that stop you in your tracks and make you ponder life and the things that are truly important.

Life is a celebration. Focus on the things which are beautiful. There is a bright future. Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things. Philippians 4:8 Our job is to look for it, to find it and to perpetuate it in our lives. Can you imagine how it would bring change to our lives and those around us? If we could pick up on these things and share them. If we could have them penetrate our hearts, to our core being. Enough with the opposite of the things that matter in life, there has been too much already. Why keep alive the negative attitudes within us, what has it done for us?

Can we think of anything that focusing on the negative has produced? What has it served? Has it supported anything in our lives? Has it brought about the change we desire? We all have it in us to think about the positive even if it is but a spark. Take hold of that spark, don’t let go. We all have to start somewhere. It only brings about good in our lives and the more we see it, the more we will desire it, the more it will dominate our thinking. Finding beauty in this world is like perpetual motion, once it starts it continues to increase.

Take a moment. Stop your busy day. See the beauty around you. Start down a new path.