For the Lord does not see as man sees;
for man looks at the outward appearance,
but the Lord looks at the heart.
for man looks at the outward appearance,
but the Lord looks at the heart.
1 Samuel 16:7b
There are probably very few of us who actually see ourselves as beautiful, stunning specimens that God created, just so others could gaze on our beauty. I think as women, for the most part there are sections of our bodies we feel may need more of this or less of that.
Having worked in a school system for many years in the past, and having 10 grandchildren. I've been exposed to lots of innocent comments about personal features I have that might be a little different to them. It's not that I have two heads, however if there's an imperfection, they will most likely point it out. A recent encounter was with two of my youngest grandchildren who apparently had never seen me with wet hair. Turns out, they didn't like it. In fact, after sitting on my lap and staring at me for a bit, my 2 1/2 year old grandaughter climbed down and said "Nana, your hair . . . is so very wet". Yes indeed it was.
By the same token, children notice when there is something they like about us that's new or different. For example - "I like your new skirt Nana, is that what you wear to birthdays?"
Regardless of how we appear to others; tall, short, thin, plump, skin imperfections, big feet, pretty or plain. God made us exactly as He wanted us to be. He looks at our heart and searches it, knows the motives for what we do and why we do it.
Obviously we all probably make an attempt to be presentable in our appearance, but more important than that is putting time into making sure our hearts are pleasing to the Lord.
I love the section of this verse from Daniel 1:8 that says "Daniel purposed in his heart" ~ But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s delicacies, nor with the wine which he drank; He decided to do what he thought would be most pleasing to the Lord.
For the Lord does not see as man sees;
for man looks at the outward appearance,
but the Lord looks at the heart.
for man looks at the outward appearance,
but the Lord looks at the heart.
1 Samuel 16:7b
Have a blessed day my friends.
Thank you for this thoughtful and reassuring post Abby - too often we criticise who God has created us to be, without realising that we are really criticising Him!!
ReplyDeleteBlessings
Maxine
It's such a gift of God to be able to "purpose" something in our hearts. If we just let our thoughts run amok, they're unlikely to find their way to anything true on their own.
ReplyDeleteOh I love that story of your little grands not liking to see you with wet hair. LOL
ReplyDeleteI’m afraid that my heart looks pretty dark by times. Good thing that the blood of Jesus covers me for there is not one thing I can do to improve myself. If there were, I would not need a Savior and how I need Him!
A blessed week to you, Abby. I know that it will be a busy one.
You are so precious, my friend, and I am so thankful for your love for the Lord because it flows out onto those around you. Thank you for this sweet post and oh, what a wonderful reminder.
ReplyDeleteLove and hugs!
Such a good post, Abby! Yes we do make decisions with our mind on what we do or don't do, our heart should be to please God. I have found this so true recently in my life. I also can relate to "wet hair". When my grandson was too young to talk, he noticed my wet hair after washing it, all he could do was stare at my hair He knew something was different. When our hearts are changed to see things God's way others notice the difference.
ReplyDeleteA beautiful reminder Abby.
ReplyDelete