“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will
give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your
souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
(Matthew 11: 28-31)
———————–

This morning, I was alone in the house and had just let our

two dachshunds out the back door when a song began to go through

my head. It was a sectarian song that was very popular

in the 1980s called “You Are So Beautiful To Me.”

The songwriter had (apparently) written this song about a
romantic relationship, but as the lyrics and melody went through my
head this morning, it made me think about the beauty of Jesus Christ,
our Lord and Savior.

Often, in these crazy days we are living in, our focus on the
Person of Jesus Christ gets lost in all of the various other peripheral
distractions of AmericanChristianity in the year 2010. We get sidetracked
by politics; following certain “celebrity” national preachers to a point
close to idolatry; worshiping the “experience” of musical worship as
a substitute for worshiping the Lord Jesus Christ with our voices
and instruments. I could go on and on……

And there is so much ugliness in our sectarian culture. The language
that is used by many people on the internet is frequently shocking
to me - and I don’t consider myself to be a prude. Then, there are
the vile, perverse and violent messages in popular music, movies
and TV shows Sometimes, I feel almost smothered in the cesspool
of filth and degradation that characterizes so much of our
American culture in 2010.

It is during times when I feel overwhelmed by the ugly sin around
me that I know it is time for me to ponder the beauty of our Lord
Jesus Christ.Though no paintings were made of Jesus during His
lifetime on Earth, Scripture “paints” many pictures depicting His
beauty. There we find Him, beckoning the little children to His lap;
preaching the stunningly grace-filled Sermon on the Mount;
bringing a little girl back from the dead; telling of His special love for
the poor, the sick, the elderly, the handicapped, those who feel
alone and estranged; sitting on the ground with illiterate and coarse
people as He explained profound spiritual truth to them by telling
them simple stories that they could understand.

But, by far the most powerful picture painted by the Scripture
writers concerning the beauty of Jesus is found in the accounts
of His crucifixion and subsequent resurrection from the dead.
Beaten and bloodied almost beyond recognition as He hung
on the Cross awaiting His death, Jesus is concerned
about the well-being of everyone else - including the evil people
who hung Him there and who He asked His Father to
forgive: “for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34).

It’s interesting to see some of the programs produced by sectarian
cable networks in which they try to make arguments about what
Jesus really looked like during his relatively brief time on Earth.
At best, this is only a guessing game. And, we who are believers
don’t tend to spend a lot of time being concerned about Jesus’
physical appearance.

Instead, we think about the moment in time when we will stand
face-to-face before the One who is beautiful beyond all
human description.

And we will finally be home.

Malachi 3:6 “For I am the LORD, I do not change; Therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob.”

Hebrews 13:8 “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”

James 1:17 “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.”
—————
I live in a small city where I grew up and when I go through certain neighborhoods there are plenty of reminders of my childhood days of long, long ago.

There is a basketball court at an old, now-abandoned elementary school where I spent hour upon hour playing ball as a kid. It is across the street from what used to be a soda fountain, pharmacy and magazine shop (bear with me young people - smile).

Recently, someone decided to tear down the goals on the old basketball court and it made me sad to see that the hoops where I used to toss balls through 45 years ago are not there anymore.

Just another reminder to me that everything changes; nothing stays constant in this life.

If you have lost a loved one, then you know that the most painful change is seeing someone you love pass away. This leaves a vacuum on our hearts. But it also serves to remind us that this life is fleeting; we need to be mindful of that fact each and every day of our lives.

I’m an old man, getting close to age 60, and change seems to be a constant in my life. Yes, in many ways, I long for “the old days” and have trouble adjusting to modern-day culture and attitudes.

But I am always comforted to meditate on the truth that God - the Creator of the universe and everything in it - NEVER changes. The Scriptures I listed above attest to that fact. God can be an unchanging constant in our lives, if we let Him. We can hold onto Him and allow Him to be our “rock” of security and comfort.

Have you been feeling anxious and insecure lately? Well, join the club, because that’s a common condition of human beings in the year 2010. There is very little about this quickly-changing world that can make us feel secure and free from worry and anxiety.

Except God. And that, my friend, means everything.
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Prayer for Today:
Dear Lord, I am so blessed to know that you never change and that I can always count on you to be there - even in the midst of great changes in my personal life. Help me to cling to You; to hold onto your wonderful promises; to come to you during my times of anxiety. Thank you so much, Lord, for ALWAYS being there for me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.