Beauty out of Sin

Through the hustle and bustle of the mornings, trying to get everyone to school and work, I am silenced and my world stops rushing for a while as I stare at the mountains lining the horizon.  The mountains are visible beckoning my attention as I am on my way to work.  I could just say forget about work and stare at the rugged peaks, the snow caps, the shades of blue on the masterpieces that lay ahead.  It is amazing.  I love the mountains.  

The only other thing that I can think of that matches the beauty of the mountains that was not created by man is the changing of the colors.  As Autumn rolls in, the cool breezes blow, and the green leaves fade into shades of red, orange, and yellow.  I had never really witnessed this until this past Autumn.  I had never seen such vibrant colors before.  The dark, rich red leaves have become my favorite.  

I am able to experience these two beautiful things that were not present in my previous home.  Trees were in Texas, they changed colors.  But the colors were not vibrant.  And the leaves fell off the trees within days of them changing colors.  Never had they stayed like they do here.  And of course mountains are non existent in Texas.  There are some hills, but not true mountains.  At least in my opinion.  But here.  *Sigh*

It is amazing to think about these two objects of my affection.  Object one--mountains.  A reminder of sin.  A reminder of a flood that happened over 4,000 years ago.  The water ripping the world apart.  All because of sin.  Everything God created was good.  Then enter sin.  Sin created the beauty of the mountains.

Object two--the changing of the colors.  A yearly reminder of death.  The leaves change colors because of their impending death.  As the leaves start to change, they begin to fall off the trees until Spring.  The beauty of the leaves is because of sin.  

Despite the fact that these two objects are a reminder of sin, they are also reminder of God's grace.  

It makes me think.  These two beautiful things are a result of sin.  It goes to show that God can even make something beautiful out of something caused by sin.  

Then I think of me.  I am a sinner.  No doubt about it.  But in spite of my sin, God can turn my life into something beautiful.  He can forgive me of my sins, if I repent of them.  He can cleanse me and make me white as snow.  He can shine through me so that others can see Him.  And when people see Him, they will see something beautiful.  

When I see the mountains and the trees, I don't see the sin, I see the beauty.  I pray God can helps others to see the beauty in me and not the sin.  This is possible only By God's Amazing Grace.