THINK BEAUTIFUL THOUGHTS

~

 

Philippians 4:8

Finally,

brethren,

whatsoever things are true,

whatsoever things are honest,

whatsoever

things are just,

whatsoever things are pure,

whatsoever things are lovely,

whatsoever things are of good report;

if there be any virtue,

and if there be any praise,

think on these things.”

This whole scripture is a beautiful

Christian maxim to live by.

In this verse,

if we had a zoom lens to focus

upon one word,

it would be “lovely.”

The definition for lovely is:

adj. 1 obs: LOVING.

3 : delightful for beauty,

harmony or grace.

syn. See BEAUTIFUL.

 ~

 

I want to share 2 excerpts from

“The Diary of a Young Girl ”

by Anne Frank,

the young German-Jewish girl

during World War 2

who was forced into hiding with her family

and 4 others for 2 1/2 years.

After being betrayed , they were taken

to a Nazi concentration camp,

where she died of Typhus at age 15.

Her diary was written while in hiding,

and rescued by a family helper.

It was first published in 1947.

The perception of one so young is extremely

touching!

 

                           Anne Frank

Faith to Survive

“And in the evening,

when I lie in bed

and end my prayers with the words,

“thank You,

God,

for all that is dear and good and beautiful,”

I am filled with joy.

Then I think about “the good” of going into hiding,

of my health and with my whole being of the “dearness” of Peter,

*[who was a son of a family of friends which hid with the Frank family,]

of that which is still embryonic and impressionable

and which we neither of us dare to name or touch,

of that which will come sometime:

love,

the future,

happiness

and of “the beauty”

which exists in the world;

the world,

nature,

beauty and all,

all that is exquisite and fine.

I don’t think then of all the misery,

but of the beauty that still remains.  

This is one of the things that Mummy  

and I are so entirely different about.

Her counsel when one feels 

melancholy is:

 “Think of all the misery in the world

and be thankful that you are not sharing in it!”

 

 

My advice is:

“Go outside, to the fields,

enjoy nature and the sunshine,

go out and try to recapture happiness

in yourself and in God.

Think of all the beauty

that’s still left in and around you

and be happy!”

 

 

I don’t see how Mummy’s ideas can be right,

because how are you supposed to behave

if you go through the misery yourself?

Then you are lost.

On the contrary,

I’ve found that there is always some beauty left- in

nature,

sunshine,

freedom,

in yourself;

these can all help you.

Look at these things,

then you find yourself again,

and God,

and then you regain your balance.

And whosoever is happy will make others happy too.

He who has courage and faith will never perish in misery!”

~

Again Anne had these wise words to say:

“I keep my ideals because in spite of everything I still believe that

people are really good at heart.

I simply can’t build up my hopes on a foundation consisting of confusion,

misery and death.

I can feel the sufferings of millions,

and yet,

if I look up to the heavens,

I think that it will come right,

that this cruelty too will end,

and that peace and tranquility will return again.”

 

  How old was this kid when she wrote these words?

Hmm, if she was in hiding for nearly 2 1/2 years,

and died at the tender age of 15 …

 

 

In a church we visited,

there is special Christian lady that attends.

Every time you are

around her,

she exudes good things.

Everything is a blessing,

all things are wonderful!

Take this sweet example,

I asked her something like,

“So Sister, how was your afternoon? “

Characteristically her eyes are bright

and she smiles and laughs constantly.

So she said something like this,

“Oh Sis-ter! (she says this word with emphasis on the ‘ter’).

It was wonderful!

My dogs were asleep in the air

conditioning and I said, thank you Lord my dogs are happy!”

 When I told the pastor some of the sweet things she said,

he chuckled and said,

“Yes, she’s like that.”

What a beautiful way to be!

 

~

~

The only way I know to cultivate beautiful thoughts

is to spend time with a Savior “…that is altogether lovely.”

When we come into His presence and pour out our love

and devotion unto Him,

we experience His all

enveloping love,

care, and mercy.

He breathes health and strength into our souls.

Having a living,

vibrant,

 continual fellowship

with our Lord is as vital as the next breath we breathe.

We can’t live without it

because we can’t live without Him.

 

~