“One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple.” (Psalm 27:4)
The world we must live in is often much uglier than we would like it to be. If we could change it we would; but the reality persists, sometimes even getting worse. We can pray for God to alter our landscape (and one day He will make all things right and beautiful;) but in this imperfect day He would train our eyes and mind to look and think upon the good and beautiful.
It is a bad idea to dwell on the ugly, the wrong, the ungodly. If God wants to move us to action by seeing oppression and injustice then we do well to see. But we must be carefully led down such a road by the Spirit of God. If the God of Peace is to be with us we must think about what is pure and lovely. (Philippians 4:8,9) Focusing on the wrong and ugly is usually a recipe for inner turmoil. Our hearts become overcharged with fear, anger, hatred, and despair.
In a world that falls far short of God’s glory, let us see Jesus, who is the image of all goodness and glory. He is the beauty of the Lord, who is always worth beholding, even in a day when iniquity abounds and ugliness surrounds us. Jesus is all that is right in a wrong world. Let your eyes find Him.