Day 3 - The Beauty God Sees

Reading Passage: Matthew 6:28-30

Where I live, we are surrounded by beautiful mountains that bloom these ridiculously gorgeous wildflowers at the end of summer. Truly, a picture taken of these beauties makes anyone look like a professional photographer. 

The assorted rainbow of colors that blanket the grassy meadows in the alpine slopes of the mountains is God’s reminder of the beauty He has created.

It’s also a reminder of how He cares for every detail. That care that clothed the flowers of the fields, is the same care He has for clothing us, and then some. Jesus said it best:

“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith?” Matthew 6:28-30, NIV 

Notice something here: Even King Solomon, the richest man of his time, could not dress more beautiful than the flowers God created. 

Does that help you see the value God puts on what we wear? 

I didn’t grow up in a wealthy family. I wore hand-me-downs clothes, only shopped sales, and hit up every garage sale we came across. We wore all the knock-off brands and I constantly found that I was comparing myself to others. It was easy to become obsessed with what I didn’t have. Yet a life of discontentment can easily turn to worry. 

Worry you’re not good enough. 

Worry that you don’t live up to what others expect. 

Worry you won’t fit in.

Whether you grew up with hand-me-downs like me, or the finest clothing money can buy, you can’t impress God by what you wear. In fact, He wants to clothe you in something more amazing than any designer outfit.

“I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.” (Isaiah 61:10, NIV)

“People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7, NIV)

“Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.” (Proverbs 31:30, NIV)

What would it look like if we stopped comparing ourselves to others and instead cared only of what God thought of us?

Beauty is fleeting, like grass that is here today and gone tomorrow. But God is constant. The beauty He has for us is more than we can ever imagine and He is worthy of our affection and praise. 

Lord, thank you for supplying for our needs in a deeper and richer way than we could ever hope. Help us live a life of contentment in what we have, and not worry about how the world expects us to dress, live, or act. Amen.