The Weight of Glory

From I Corinthians 18:

35-38
Some skeptic is sure to ask, "Show me how resurrection works. Give me a diagram; draw me a picture. What does this 'resurrection body' look like?" If you look at this question closely, you realize how absurd it is. There are no diagrams for this kind of thing. We do have a parallel experience in gardening. You plant a "dead" seed; soon there is a flourishing plant. There is no visual likeness between seed and plant. You could never guess what a tomato would look like by looking at a tomato seed. What we plant in the soil and what grows out of it don't look anything alike. The dead body that we bury in the ground and the resurrection body that comes from it will be dramatically different.

⁵¹ But let me tell you something wonderful, a mystery I'll probably never fully understand. We're not all going to die—but we are all going to be changed.

I read this today, and thought of the other night when I was up late. I'd been working, and I got hot. So I went outside to cool off.

It was a gorgeous night, very clear and cool although not really cold. The breeze was wonderful; very refreshing. I looked up, and the stars were shining like Christmas ornaments. Not the usual brightness that just shines, but a twinkling light that was blue, then red, then green, then white, then blue -- in no particular pattern, just always different. It seems like all the "big" stars did that, while others just shone white. I kept saying "diamonds, they're diamonds in the sky" over and over, marvelling.

I stood there and thanked God for his beautiful creation. Along with the stars was all the green in my yard -- the grass, the trees, the flowers, the herbs. It's just a regular yard, nothing special or even terribly organised. But does it really have to be? God's creation is at its most beautiful when it is at its wildest. Perfect landscaping is wonderful for a yard, but it can't hold a candle to an entire field full of lavender that just volunteered.

As I stood there thanking God for this, I remembered that C.S. Lewis was always reminding of what Paul told us: that this world, this life, is just a poor reflection of the life and world that is to come. Easy to say -- difficult to imagine. The key is to remember that we're not talking about some fictional idea. It's a real place, in a real location, where real beings live. And I'm looking forward to being there as I have never longed for a place in my life.

I'll leave you today with another favourite quote from C.S. Lewis in "The Weight of Glory:

"It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses to remember that the dullest and most uninteresting person you may talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and corruption such as you now meet if at all only in a nightmare. . . There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations--these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit--immortal horrors or everlasting splendours."

xoxox

The Volunteers

The Pale Reflection of What Is to Come

Today, I'm reminded, from Luke 11 -- the very words of Jesus --

"Your eye is a lamp, lighting up your whole body. If you live wide-eyed in wonder and belief, your body fills up with light. If you live squinty-eyed in greed and distrust, your body is a dank cellar. Keep your eyes open, your lamp burning, so you don't get musty and murky. Keep your life as well-lighted as your best-lighted room."

I keep thinking of some words from a song I love, called "Here in America" by Rich Mullins:

"There's so much beauty around us, and just two eyes to see -- and everywhere I go, I'm looking."

I drive on Highway 158 from Roanoke Rapids to Littleton, and I see lots of gold flowers just dotted along the roadside. It's as if God sprinkled the landscape with them, as if God said "Who wants to be on beauty duty today?" and they volunteered.

Earlier this year, while vacationing in Indiana, I saw the same kind of thing with wild daylilies. Even the vegetation says "Here, I can do that -- "

You don't really have to even try to see all this around you. You just have to look. The pity is only have two eyes to take it all in.

xoxox

Skin-care Savings

Remember the great "Beyond Belief" skincare products I told you about here?

They're on sale at Sally right now -- buy 2 get 1 free. Usually they work out to be about $5.99 each. I'm planning on grabbing some facewash and eye cream, since I use that up first. That way I can get a free serum.

Be sure to go to the Sally website and go to page 5, and then the coupon for the Beyond Belief products is at the bottom right on page 5. You can print this by clicking "print" to the left of the flyer.

You can also pick up the flyer at the store, and just use the coupon within it.

Enjoy!

xox

Beauty for the Beautifully Challenged

About 3 years ago, I had a friend introduce me to Arbonne. I loved the skin care line -- the one with all the vitamin C in it. It made my skin look SO much better, and I loved the smell of it.

But I gave it up because of the expense. It was almost $100 everytime I ran out of cleanser and moisturizer.

Two weeks ago, I was in Sally Beauty Supply looking for false eyelashes (for the play I was in). I ran across some stuff called "Beyond Belief Vita C+" moisturizer, eye cream, and serum. They were only $5.99 each so I got all 3.

Holy Facelift, Batman!

It's like I'm using the Arbonne stuff again. My skin is much nicer, wrinkles are diminishing, and it smells amazing. So I had to tell you about it.

Now I have mid-life aging skin that's had too much sun. I say this because you may have beautiful aging skin which has had very little sun, or you may have gorgeous young skin. Either way, this stuff is just flat WOW. You should try it.