I was out travelling recently for a day along the Great Ocean Road. I stopped for fish and chips for lunch in a little town called Aireys Inlet, and a shop owner was telling me about a little nearby picnic ground that was particularly beautiful. She suggested I visit (which I did out of curiosity) and she also suggested that it may have been a sacred site of local indigenous people in years gone by, seemingly simply because it is a particularly lovely spot. I arrived at the picnic ground with eyes wide open and walked the track along through the bush up to a stunning lookout over the coastline. It is a beautiful area, and even the bushland along the track was particularly pretty in parts, despite more than a few spider's webs across the sandy walking track. I was there alone - so it was me, the birds, the butterflies, the little lizards rushing away as I approached, and the spiders sitting in their webs.... It got me thinking (and feeling as I walked) about the spirituality of space, as it is my impression that indigenous people are traditionally particularly spiritually connected to the land.
I am a bit of a 'feeler'. I can sense boundaries (for want of a better word) at times between areas that feel open and clean and nicer, compared to others that feel a little 'closed in' and grotty or just not very nice. It's hard to describe with words, but at times I can feel a shift whilst driving in a very specific area; its almost like crossing an unwritten boundary from one area to another. If I am in a worship or prayer meeting, I can also 'feel' different spaces in a room, and I have been known to move around a room and stop in one specific space because it simply feels good to worship there. I have played with this a bit in the past and I can actually walk out of a space that feels good, and then walk back into it again and it will feel the same thing the second or third time around. I have friends who are seers, and I do believe in angels and the like. There are also a few good books around about these subjects, but I think I am more of a feeler, so I am becoming more aware to question what I am feeling and why I am feeling it these days. Is what I am feeling me (or mine), or is it something else that I am picking up on?
I have heard other preachers talk about 'atmospheres' and being able to change them with prayer and with our very presence as Christians. I guess this is similar to my sense of feeling boundaries in some ways and I am even starting to question my emotional response to certain situations. I am aware that others 'feel' with greater levels of discernment than I do, but nevertheless I am aware that I do feel a fair bit. I have been told I carry a lot of peace and people often feel peaceful as I pray with them. That is a good thing. My little journey through the aboriginal area got me thinking as to whether beauty is also a spiritual attribute. I am thinking it is. I have seem someone's face change following prayer - soften and become less edgy. I have also seen someone's face be covered in gold dust with prayer (it didn't stay for too long). But that's another story. So I am thinking beauty in our natural surrounds is not too far fetched.
My home is my refuge and I feel that it has been a gift from God. It has been prayed through, and loved and I have received compliments in regards to its appearance. Admittedly I have had the carpet done, a recent paint job and the kitchen and bathroom renovated. It is home for me and I really don't spend too much money on it; the furniture is quite eclectic and there are plenty of older pieces of furniture, most of my stuff has been gifted to me or purchased on holidays or overseas travel, and it is all kind of relaxed and well loved.
I was also watching the declutter show on tv last night and the host was talking to the wife/mother/clutter-collector in the house about her relationship with space and he was suggesting that, like any relationship, that it needs some honour, respect, love and attention. I like that idea. We do have a 2 way relationship with the space that we occupy, and it does affect our emotions and mood and the way that others will perceive us. That is a new idea to me too!
The idea of the beauty of God, however is not new. There is a little about it in the bible.
Psalm 27:4 TPT
Here’s the one thing I crave from Yahweh, the one thing I seek above all else:
I want to live with him every moment in his house, beholding the marvelous beauty of Yahweh,
filled with awe, delighting in his glory and grace.
I want to contemplate in his temple.
Ecclesiastes 3:11
He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.
Song of Songs 1:3 TPT
Your presence releases a fragrance so pleasing—over and over poured out.
For your lovely name is “Flowing Oil.” No wonder the brides-to-be adore you.
It is an interesting and very pleasing thought that the presence of God within us, is a beautiful and attractive thing. And not only within us, but also within our surroundings! I am not sure why I am even questioning this, as it should be a given. I have also been to a couple of social gatherings recently and I was at a wedding last week, where there were maybe 3 groups of people present - work friends, church / Alpha ministry friends and family. By the end of the evening, I was aware that it was our little group that were up dancing and smiling and being free to enjoy each other's company mostly without being worried about what we looked like (we probably occupied half the dance floor towards the end of the evening). Also no-one was loud or attention seeking (or trying too hard) and we weren't drinking or joking coarsely. None of the girls had boobs hanging out of our dresses (just saying). In my mind, that all is attractive in and of itself. These are the type of friends I want to keep.
Our Father and Lord is indeed beautiful. And we are made in his image. We have the privilege to seek out and enjoy his beauty in all kinds of ways, and it is our inheritance as Christians. As we abide in Him, his peace, his pleasure and his beauty, we are transformed to be more like him. I don't know about you, but I want to know Him and to be beautiful. From the inside out!
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