Eyes that See

Twice within 2 days I was told that I was beautiful from someone other than my husband! Both times it about brought tears to my eyes.

You see, I realized in both incidents that neither one was seeing what I was really like on the outside but rather the compliment came from something they had seen in my heart. That to me, was the ultimate.

The first time it came from seeing me through a child's eyes.

I had Jake and Max come spend the night with us Thanksgiving eve. In the morning I had cocoa and cinnamon rolls waiting for them when they woke up. (Might as well give them that sugar-high first thing!) As I was cutting Max's into bite size pieces he simply said "Grandma, you re beautiful." Now he has told me that before but it can still melt my heart! I hadn't showered yet, no make-up on, and I was standing there in my favorite robe (and Warren would tell you it is not a very pretty robe)! There would be no question that the compliment had nothing to do with how I was looking that morning! But rather, I had spent time with him the evening before and now he was excited about the cinnamon roll in front of him and he hears his daddy tell his mama that all the time.....

The second time came through an e-mail.

I have been writing back and forth with a young lady from the slum in Rio "the City of God". She is a christian but has been going through some tough times dealing with some hard things in her past. I was asked by someone else if maybe I could share some things the Lord has done in my life in the areas of healing and forgiveness with her. It has been my pleasure. I have come to love this girl through e-mails as she grasps what it means to be fathered by the almighty God. She said she saw a picture of me and that I was beautiful. She told me what picture it was. One of Warren and I taken together for the church paper. It is not a good picture and anyone that has seen it would agree. I'm not just saying that because I scrutinize my own pictures. I have laughed with others over this particular one. It is BAD.

No, it really had very little to do with the picture she had seen. It may have something to do with the blond hair and (if she could even tell it) the blue eyes but I know the majority of the compliment was because of her last statement, "I am happy because I feel more free, with less fear and more love."

I am ending this week feeling more beautiful having been seen through these two sets of eyes.

My prayer is to see through eyes that can really see, too.