Fall

I have been sleeping outside lately, actually, for the past month, and really enjoying nature. As I have let my mind wander in the vastness of the world, I have recalled the sunsets and sunrises over the ocean at the beach. I have thought about looking out over ledges in the mountains while listening to a waterfall in the distance, fog rolling in and covering a lake secluded by mountains. I have looked out into the night sky, watching little pieces of debris cause shooting stars.

In all of this, I see beauty. I see God in a new light. I see the beautiful God who created each and every one of us. As I stare off in amazement, I cannot help but to think about this beauty. I wonder what is this beauty, and why does it create such a stir within me?

Beauty is such an amazing word that I do not think many people really comprehend, including myself. As I have thought over the last month, I have come to realize that beauty is beautiful because we cannot grasp it - it's unknown. And in that unknown, beauty makes it self present.

See, when I stare into the sky at night, I don't know what to think. I don't know how many stars are out there. I simply cannot comprehend the little lights glimmering in front of me. I just know that it is beautiful.

When I stand in the mountains looking at the changing leaves, listening to a waterfall in the distance, I know where I am, but what about the trees? Where did they come from? How long have they been there? Why do the leaves change? In all of this, I see beauty. Not just because I can see it, but because there is something inside me that wants to know it more.

"Where did the fog come from? How long has this lake been here? What lives in there?" I wonder as I stand on a dam. Beauty. I see these beautiful images and come so close to understanding, but I don't have the capacity to understand.

As I wake up to red, orange, and yellow skies, I cannot help but to think, what lies beyond the horizon? What makes these colors? What does today hold in store for me? Once again, beautiful. Yet, I cannot grasp this idea of beauty.

When I look at the cross, I see something ugly. Something I would never want to see again. Yet it is beautiful? It is beautiful because we cannot comprehend why He would do such a thing.

But one of the most beautiful sights I have seen is not a sunrise or mountain scene, a starry sky or fog over a lake. It is a group of people who typically meet on Sunday mornings. These people have tasted this beauty and understand it in different ways. Ways that I do not always understand. These people have potential - an unknown amount of potential.

Just as each star flickers differently, no sunset is the same, no lake is ever covered by the same fog, and the leaves express themselves with different colors, they are different, each having their own ways.

Be beautiful. Let people see you, but make them wonder what is different about you.