God thinks you are beautiful.  According to the Psalmist, God believes that Jerusalem is beautiful as well.  Is it beautiful for beauty sake, or is it beautiful because God declares it beautiful?  God thinks you are special!  Why not concentrate more on what He thinks, than what your boss, ex-girlfirend or neighbor thinks?

Ps 48:1-14

48 Great is the Lord, and most worthy of praise,

in the city of our God, his holy mountain.

2 It is beautiful in its loftiness,

the joy of the whole earth.

Like the utmost heights of Zaphon is Mount Zion,

the city of the Great King.

3 God is in her citadels;

he has shown himself to be her fortress.

4 When the kings joined forces,

when they advanced together,

5 they saw [her] and were astounded;

they fled in terror.

6 Trembling seized them there,

pain like that of a woman in labor.

7 You destroyed them like ships of Tarshish

shattered by an east wind.

8 As we have heard,

so have we seen

in the city of the Lord Almighty,

in the city of our God:

God makes her secure forever

9 Within your temple, O God,

we meditate on your unfailing love.

10 Like your name, O God,

your praise reaches to the ends of the earth;

your right hand is filled with righteousness.

11 Mount Zion rejoices,

the villages of Judah are glad

because of your judgments.

12 Walk about Zion, go around her,

count her towers,

13 consider well her ramparts,

view her citadels,

that you may tell of them to the next generation.

14 For this God is our God for ever and ever;

he will be our guide even to the end.

The Psalmist begins with “Great is the Lord”  This where everything has to begin.  We see His greatness in many ways.   This great God is our God.

There seems to be some exaggeration in this claim.  The description of Jerusalem.  The hill on which the city is situated is not particularly high.  Nor were its towers and ramparts of a size or magnitude that kings would be panicked by the mere sight of them.  The grand statements about the city in Psalm 48 and elsewhere were not statements of physical realities as much as theological  statements.

We don’t appreciate beauty usually unless someone stops and makes us look at them.Within its citadels God has shown Himself our helper and deliverer. The Bible often times depicts life as a journey.  A eternal  journey.

Components of a journey

  • Destination
  • Compass or direction
  • God’s Will
  • The Path
  • The journey. It is not always pleasant different for each of us, but it is rewarding
  • The Guide
  • Wisdom

 

  • Jerusalem has no great harbor

 

  • It is not a gateway city

 

  • It is not a banking, or trading or industrial city

 

  • It really does not have strategic high ground

 

  • Only One thing is important, this is the city of God choosing

 

Whether anyone thinks you are important, even if you do not think you are important, God made you and He cares about you deeply. The same God who declared Jerusalem strategic and beautiful, declares His love for you!  Christmas is the story of a God who is so in love with His creation, that He is willing to redeem and transform each and every one of us.  Never forget that God is for you and put your trust in Him.

 

 

3 Thoughts to “In the Eye of the Beholder!”

  1. Sometimes when I read your posts I hear your voice in my head. Haha 🙂

    1. JoAnn I thought I was the only person who if I know the person, I can hear their voice while reading what they write. Merry Christmas

  2. Lisa

    Great reminder of God’s great love for us! Merry Christmas!

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