Today I left work in the middle of a snow storm and as I was driving, I was literally smiling from ear to ear in complete joy of the beauty of the snow. And I thought to myself, "could anything be more beautiful than this scene?" At that very moment, I looked to my left and saw the sun shining randomly and vividly out of the clouds. The snow was falling heavily and the clouds were thick and invasive; but through it all, the sun penetrated and shone with radiance and beauty. But as quickly as it appeared, it then vanished behind buildings. I found myself searching the horizon desperately to get another glimpse of this miraculously radiant image. And as I did, the only thought in my mind was, "I long to see the sun".
The reality for most of us is that there is, in fact, a storm raging around us, clouding our vision, and we sometimes struggle to see how anything could be more beautiful, more satisfying, or more worthy of our pursuit than the things of this world and our own selfish desires. The lure of sin is thick and invasive and we are blinded by false beauty. And as sin infiltrates our hearts, it keeps from seeing the deepest and most radiant beauty of all. But at the depth of our being, our soul cries out, "I long to see the Son".
Psalm 27:4 says, "one thing I ask of the Lord; this I seek: to dwell in the Lord's house all the days of my life, to gaze on the Lord's beauty" and in verse 8 continues and says, "'Come' says my heart, 'seek God's face'. Your face, Lord, do I seek". And with these two short lines, the psalmist expresses the greatest longing of us all--for the beauty of the Lord. Nothing we seek-no earthen creation, no human relationship, no selfish pursuit-will provide for us this beauty for which our soul pines.
Hebrews 12:1 says, "Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to us and persevere in running the race that lies before us while keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the leader and perfecter of faith". And may this verse be our prayer and our meditation this week. May we pray with diligence for the intercession of the Saints that they might surround us like a cloud and witness to us the beauty found in the Lord. May we repent and allow Christ to rid us of the burden of sin that infiltrates our lives with its thick, invasive covering. And let us, in prayer and Sacrament, with perseverance and self-control, keep our eyes fixed on Christ, the perfecter of faith and the source of perfect beauty. Lord Jesus, with the radiance of your love, penetrate the clouds of sin and shine into the depths of our hearts that we might experience the perfect beauty found in you alone.
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