Saturday, August 20, 2011

Peter and Aladdin

"Do not be fooled by its commonplace appearance. Like so many things, it is not what outside, but what is inside that counts." -Aladdin

Oh Disney...how you manage to give us the advice and words of wisdom that others just couldn't have come up with. This quote from Aladdin is possibly the best words of wisdom that Disney could ever give young children. Materialistic things, worldly pleasures, and good looks can only get you so far in life before you are at a dead end and the things that really matter start to show. These things being love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, self-control, faithfulness, gentleness...if you think I made up all of those qualities off the top of my head, think again. It is not our outer appearance that matters, but rather the fruits that we possess and bear for the glory of our king and for the enjoyment of our lives. 1 Peter 3:3-4 says, "Your beauty should not come from outward adornment...Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight."
Just like Aladdin and Peter both said, it is not on the outside that truly matters, it is the inside. The "unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit." So does this mean that we should dress homely and not try to be attractive? ...the Bible says little, if anything, about this, but I believe that the answer is no. I believe that God wants us to be attractive but to work with the natural beauty He has given us and to be satisfied with what we have. If we give off the beauty of a gentle spirit combined with the natural outer beauty that God has blessed us with, I believe that people will be naturally drawn to us.
Now even though that combination sounds rather simple, it sadly is not. In our society, materialism is king and looks are everything. So what will it take to get where God wants us to be? It will take some humility, a bit of time to recenter our focus, and a bit of apathy when dwelling in the things of the world. I challenge you to do just that.

1 comment:

  1. I love how you find meaning in so many different things that don't seem like they'd hold Biblical meaning! This is a good example of that intertwining and so is your blog about songs that can be meaningful in a spiritual context.

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