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CHAPTER
24
BEAUTY
GOD
IS a lover of beauty. He fashioned the worlds in beauty when there was no eye to
behold them but his own. The forest, the cliff, the mountain, the tree—each is
a statue of beauty. Every leaf, stem, vine, and flower is a form of beauty;
every hill and dale and landscape is a picture of beauty. There are many other
beautiful things I shall not attempt to mention here; enough has been said to
prove that God is a lover of beauty. The
highest style of beauty to be found in nature is the human form animated and
lighted up by the intelligence within. In speaking of beauty one is apt to think
of a comely form and a pretty face. But these soon fade away. I like to think of
the beauty found in the child or adult which shines out of a noble life and a
good character. This is a lasting beauty; it perisheth not. It forms the white
robe of the saints. It wreathes the countenance of every doer of good. It adorns
every honest face. It shines in the virtuous life. It molds the hands of
charity. It sweetens the voice of sympathy. It sparkles on the brow of wisdom.
It flashes in the eye of love. It breathes in the spirit of piety. It is that
which may grow by the hand of culture in every human soul. It is the flower of
the spirit. This
beauty is placed within the reach of us all. We may all be beautiful though our
forms may he uncomely and our features not the prettiest; our spirits may he
beautiful and this inward beauty always shines through. A beautiful heart will
flash out in the eye. A lovely soul will glow in the face. A sweet spirit will
tune the voice and wreathe the countenance in charms. Oh, there is power in
interior beauty! It changes not with the features and fades not with the years.
It can be relied upon. A
pretty woman pleases the eye, but a good woman does more—she pleases the
heart. The one is a jewel, the other a treasure. It is beauty of soul and
character that is most to be desired. It is possible for some to possess both.
If you are blest with pretty form and feature, you can also possess the greater
beauty—that of the godly, Spirit-filled, and perfect loveliness that a saint
possesses. Dear
reader, if you wish to be beautiful, live a life free from sin, love God above
everything, ever he found doing his blessed will, and you will be beautiful.
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