“You Are Beautiful”

Today Judy and I  were asked to “share our faith story” with some young people at Koinonia Academy…. grades 7-12, about 13-18 in age.  Having not spoken to a group of young people for quite awhile, I was trying to remember what would be important to them at that age. Gee, what was I focused on when I was in 7^th grade or even 12^th grade; I knew they probably wouldn’t be interested in the challenges of being retired or the date of my next colonoscopy. Hmmmmmmmmm. 

I remember Thomas Merton pondering what punishment he would give to his worst enemy …… and responding with, “I’d have him go thru adolescence twice.”  Yikes, that would be severe. Traveling thru the years of 13-18, thru the heart of adolescence, is not easy for anyone. Even if you’re the next Michael Jordon or the next Albert Einstein, or Brad Pitt, or the next Gina Lollobridgida, it’s still not easy. (Oh yes, Gina was designated the most beautiful woman in the world in the mid-50’s; she just died at 95) To be honest with you, no one mistook me for “Michael, Einstein, or Brad” back in the day. 

Well a couple of the things I shared today were things I wish I had known and embraced back in my adolescent years. In Psalm 139:13-16 it states that “you are fearfully and wonderfully made”. Each of us is made by God with care and attention. I love to watch those shows where they make candies like Hershey Kisses…. each one is perfect… they are all exactly alike. Well, we’re not like Hershey Kisses; each of us is different. To our eye we are probably the flawed or rejected one that is too fat or tall. Yet in God’s eye, we are “wonderfully made.”

The other related scripture I mentioned was from First Samuel, where the prophet tells us, “The Lord does not see as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” (1Sam. 16:7) What we may notice as a flaw… “too tall or short, too skinny or fat, too smart for our own good”, God sees differently.  Recently I was getting a haircut and I asked the barber to cut the hair still sticking out on the side ……he said that’s the shape of your head….. yikes. 

In God’s eyes he sees his beautiful creation…. he loves those ears and big head, but especially that great heart. Who was more beautiful than Mother Teresa? Mother Teresa was beautiful because her heart was filled with incredible love.

I ended the talk by reminding these beautiful young people that the Lord gazes on them with love, and that he has plans and a mission for each of them that he has not given to anyone else. They truly are “fearfully and wonderfully made”. 

P.S. To you who are wondering if the talk was too stiff for these young people, I did flavor it with a story of one of my earlier chemistry experiments while teaching at Koinonia…. Oh the smoke and smell…..it was great.