Life has been a whirlwind lately, so this is my first post of 2023, writing with my Spiritual Journey writing group. Thanks to Margaret Simon for organizing our group, and for providing this lovely new logo:
Our group tradition has been to choose One Little Word as our spiritual companion for the year. I've decided on "beauty" as my word for 2023. I've been interested in the concept of beauty for some years, and it finally came to me that perhaps beauty has a spiritual component. Beauty comes in many forms, and it fascinates me how our concept has changed over time, and also that we each have an individual sense of it. I hope I can find a way to tie the concept of beauty to my spiritual practice.
One of my loves is young children, and I find great beauty in their innocence and joy. I hope you can indulge me as I share just a few of my friends and family.
I remember a story, I think from Madeline L'Engle: A young child, maybe 3 or 4 years old, wanted to be left alone with the new baby in the family. Her parents were nervous, afraid the older sibling might be jealous of the new baby, and might do harm. When the parents finally allowed the older child to be alone with the baby, they watched as she sat with the new one, studying the newborn. Later the parents asked why she had needed to be alone with the baby. "I was forgetting what God was like."
To see the beauty of God in a child is just one of many ways we experience beauty. We feel the beauty of spirit when we notice courage, love, patience, self-control, kindness and more.
1 Peter 3:4 encourages us:
Cultivate inner beauty, the gentle, gracious kind that God delights in.
Of course we also see beauty in the world, in music, in art, and in many unexpected places.
So, I hope to continue sharing my year with beauty, and I hope that each of you will share your responses and sources of beauty as we go along.
Psalm 27:4 - I’m asking God for one thing,
only one thing:
To live with him in his house
my whole life long.
I’ll contemplate his beauty;
I’ll study at his feet.
Many blessings for the year ahead.
Now that you say it, of course, beauty is a spiritual practice. I recently listened to a podcast in which the person being interviewed spoke of her body as divine because it came from God. We should treat each other as if we are all beautiful and divine. I tend to think of beauty as nature, flowers, fields of horses, a sunset. Beauty can be all of these. How will the word guide you this year?
ReplyDeleteI love the scriptures you shared, especially the one from Psalm 27, "I'll contemplate His beauty." There's much to ponder just in those few words. I enjoyed going to Bible Hub and looking at the various translations.
ReplyDeleteKaren, your photos of children are adorable. I love young children too, I can see you sharing a different love (beauty) throughout the year and perhaps putting them together in a book at the end of the year, My Year with Beauty.
I love spending the year in close quarters with my word and delight in how it shows up in my life. I know you'll have a wonderful journey with beauty.
Karen, beautiful all around us if we open our eyes to it. We need to see the beauty in ourselves as well as in others. How differently we would treat each other if only we did. This word will be a great guide.
ReplyDeleteKaren, what a joy it will be to journey with you as you seek and find beauty this year. I wonder if beauty might be somewhat like gratitude - that we can find it almost anywhere, if we pause long enough. My delight is finding beauty in the hidden things, and -sheepishly, when we stumble upon its opposite - what is ugly - and use it as an opportunity for conversion, especially in our own hearts.
ReplyDeleteLovely post!
ReplyDeleteKaren, yesterday after reading your post, I found many thought on beauty and God. I would have never thought of beauty as a one word but it fits so well, e especially this thought by Peter, " Cultivate inner beauty, the gentle, gracious kind that God delights in." I wish you a year of finding beauty in life provided by the Supreme Creator. The moon ha been especially beautiful this month. May it shine upon you.
ReplyDelete