A Beautiful Struggle: An Oxymoron or Graduation Statement?
Let’s go right into the thoughts of what is deemed as beautiful. What is usually aesthetically pleasing to the eye is that which is surface level. Someone’s face, their shape, or physique is what grabs one’s attention before saying they are beautiful. The old adage, “Beauty is in the eye of the Beholder”, this subjective argument based on the person in view of who or what is being assessed. Let’s talk about Beauty being viewed objectively; for it being more than skin deep.
I recently saw a video of a gentleman in a wheelchair, and he was pushing his infant daughter in a stroller. He dismembered his wheelchair and her car seat before he drove off from the park. He did all the aforementioned without assistance from anyone. It was one of the most beautiful sights to behold. It was not just viewing someone with a disability, but seeing a doting father meet the needs of his daughter and not allowing his struggles to overshadow the beauty of their interaction.
Many times, in life we can be faced with debilitating news, things that can impede our daily routine. However, struggles can still be seen differently. They can become beautiful by the way that we take them on. The Hope of God continues to reign supreme. It is a hope that will not fail us in moments of struggle. Two people can go through a horrific car accident and get the news that each one is paralyzed from the waist down. One refuses to accept the prognosis and they go to work. Their motivation is to prove the doctors wrong. Night and day, they are working on strengthening their legs. They are doing all that they know to walk again. Their personal trainer even notices their will power and commitment to their goal. A year passes, and this individual gets news that his hard work paid off!
The other gentleman, who got the same news of being paralyzed, took another course that led him down a different path, but with the same outcome! When he received the news, he called on his family to pray with him. He began to get in a still place to hear from God concerning what he needed to do with the information that was given to him and how God would use him even during this time. He began therapy and every chance that he got; he would talk about the goodness of God. He talked about how God spared his life and that whatever the outcome, it would be for the glory of God. His demeanor got the attention of the staff and they would rush to sign up to be the one to work with him daily. This gentleman even found himself talking with others who received the same prognosis as he did.
As time progressed, he found himself getting stronger and stronger. He had feeling again in his legs. The interesting thing about his journey was the level of intensity he had in praising God through every stage. You see, he mastered the Art of Divine Living by seeing the beauty behind the struggle. What was initially a tragic incident turned into a moment for him to slow down and assess how God was going to use him. He became a beautiful billboard for Christ. He gained more than mobility in his lower extremities; he also gained a perspective that could not be taken from him. He matured in how he interpreted his struggle.
Both men got what they desired, but one got a lot more- a chance to see struggle from a vantage point of beauty. His motivation was not to prove anyone wrong; it was to prove the “rightness” of God! For whatever He allows our paths to experience, He will remain righteous! Psalm 96 is titled: A Song of Praise to God Coming in Judgment. Can our hearts see praise and judgment in the same sentence and still think of something being beautiful? So, I ask you again, “Is a Beautiful Struggle an oxymoron or graduation statement?” Being triumphant in our thinking as a Beholder will most certainly allow us to see “Beautiful Struggle” as the latter! With a heart that is set to see the bigger picture, not only will we be able to see beautiful in our struggles, but also gratefulness for how God continues to prepare and mature us.
“Oh, sing to the Lord a new song!
Sing to the Lord, all the earth.
2 Sing to the Lord, bless His name;
Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day.
3 Declare His glory among the nations,
His wonders among all peoples.
4 For the Lord is great and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods.
5 For all the gods of the peoples are idols, But the Lord made the heavens.
6 Honor and majesty are before Him;
Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary.
7 Give to the Lord, O families of the peoples,
Give to the Lord glory and strength.
8 Give to the Lord the glory due His name; Bring an offering, and come into His courts.
9 Oh, worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness! Tremble before Him, all the earth. Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns; The world also is firmly established, It shall not be moved;
He shall judge the peoples righteously.”
11 Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; Let the sea roar, and all its fullness;
12 Let the field be joyful, and all that is in it. Then all the trees of the woods will rejoice
13 before the Lord. For He is coming, for He is coming to judge the earth.
He shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with His truth.”
Divine Work & Pray:
WORK: Jot down in your Divine Design Journal some of your current struggles. Next to it, create a response space after you go into prayer concerning the issues that have been plaguing your heart.
PRAY: See the aforementioned passage of scripture Psalm 96 and meditate on it for the week.
