Hi everyone,
Last night as I was getting ready for bed, I saw my daughter sleeping in the typical way that a 4-year-old sleeps. That is, messy, tangled, and all over the place. Her face looked especially flat as she was sleeping on her back, and she was making that smacking noise that some kids (and adults) do as they sleep. It was so funny that I just had to watch for a bit and she moved around a bit (actually a lot), and hit herself in the face a couple times, almost waking herself up. I just had to laugh (mostly because I laugh at my kids a lot).
The saying came so true to me at this time: “a face only a mother could love.”
Because really, this kid looked weird. But she is still my kid and I’ll see her as beautiful not in spite of how weird she looks, but because of it.
Here are the readings for this week:
Exodus 34:29-35
Psalm 99
2 Corinthians 3:12–4:2
Luke 9:28-43a
I sometimes wonder what it would have been like to see Jesus transfiguring. Okok, I often wonder what it would have been like. I imagine the dazzling light, the white glare, the sheer beauty of it all. And I admit that I, like Peter, would want to somehow capture this moment. Perhaps I wouldn’t built a hut or something, but I’d at least grab my phone and try to take a picture. But as we know in the story, Peter’s idea of capturing the moment was shut down pretty quick by a voice from heaven that tells them to listen to this beautiful thing that is happening right in front of them.
The funny part of this story though is in the second half of it. Right after this very visibly beautiful thing happens, Jesus goes down a mountain, gets annoyed at some random guy, and then heals his kid. It’s like life as usual for Jesus’ band of merry followers.
But… although the Transfiguration itself must have been beautiful and just a wonder to be seen, I would argue that Jesus’ act of healing was equally beautiful. Actually, maybe even more as it is tangible, attainable, and accessible by all… in that while Jesus was annoyed, he healed.
While Jesus could have ignored, he saw. And while we were sinners, Jesus loves and saves us.
That is beautiful. And we can continue this beauty and reflect it onto others through our words, our actions, and our very lives. All the while remembering that while others might look at the actions of a helpful person and just think “meh,” to the one who is being helped and to those who appreciate it, it is truly a beauty of divine proportions.
Have a great week, everyone!