Something Beautiful

  

The pretty yellow dress &
beautiful little girl!

My love of pretty clothes has always made the hunt for the perfect Easter dress one of my favorite spring activities.  As a young mother the hunt was normally for the perfect pattern, material, lace and ribbon and of course the matching hat or bonnet for my little girl.  One of my favorites was a bright yellow satin dress with a layered lace collar. The funny thing is that one began with digging through the scraps in my mother’s box of fabric for something that would work for an Easter dress.  My mother had a piece of yellow satin left over from making a “Daisy” cape and a lot of scraps of different laces.  With that in mind, I searched the pattern book at Wal-Mart for something that would work with all the mismatched pieces of lace. Satisfied with the one with the big layered collar, I purchased a small amount of yellow ribbon and went home to piece together the scraps. The end product was a beautiful dress for a beautiful little girl.

I would like to say I saw in that experience a reminder of how God takes the pieces of our lives and makes them into something beautiful. That would have been a great Easter lessen. But nope, in 1990 I was just excited to have a pretty dress for my almost 3 year- old daughter.  I wasn’t looking for anything more. But today, thinking back on Easters past I see the symbolism in that yellow dress. Not only was it made from scraps, the yellow satin remnant was connected to a memory of broken relationships in my life at that time.

Isn’t that how it often works?  Our vision is clearer to see the good God was working when we are looking back.

This must have been true for the women who followed Jesus through his trial, crucifixion and resurrection. These were women who had experienced the beauty of His touch. Women who knew the good he had made from the pieces of their lives. Earlier we are told he took his disciples along with some women he had healed and from whom he had cast out evil spirits on his journeys. Among them where Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Susanna and many others who were contributing from their own resources to support Jesus and his disciples. (Luke 8:2-3 NLT)   

He trusted these women to be the first to witness his resurrection and take the message back to his disciples. Luke, chapter 24 identifies Mary Magdalene and Joanna to be among several women who told the apostles what had happened.  Jesus even appeared to them as they went to find the disciples, “Jesus met them and greeted them. And they ran to him, grasped his feet, and worshiped him.” (Matthew 28:9 NLT)  What a beautiful moment!

And yet the beauty of that moment had been not visible only 3 days before. Today, we gaze upon the cross and see the beauty of what was being accomplished. These women watched from a distance and saw brokenness and strife. All the good they had seen Jesus bring in their lives must have felt like a distant memory as they watched the horrific events of his death.  “A large crowd trailed behind, including many grief-stricken women.” (Luke 23:27 NLT)  In the midst of their confusion and grief as soon as it was possible they made their way to the tomb prepared to care for Jesus one last time. It was there they were the first to witness the risen Lord and to hear his voice say do not be afraid. How sweet those words must have been. I wonder how many times along the way, he had said those words to them. The beauty of what Jesus had accomplished on the cross was beginning to be clearer.

When Stephen was pastoring Hugoton Baptist Church we often sang this chorus,

Something beautiful, something good
All my confusion He understood
All I had to offer Him was brokenness and strife
But he made something beautiful of my life

One particular Sunday morning, I quietly began singing the song in the present tense. All my confusion he understands, all I have to offer him is brokenness and strife, but he is making something beautiful of my life. There are moments in life when the good and beautiful are clear. There are others when the beauty and the good are still in the making.  

We traded Easter eggs for roses.
& bright yellow for gold, but still
my beautiful little girl!

One last thought, as beautiful as Ginny’s little yellow satin dress was that Easter morning years later when it came time for prom a new yellow satin dress was required. The beauty of the past was not the right fit for that moment. Life brings changes which often include confusion, brokenness and strife.  Each time God is still making something good and beautiful of that moment. I am sure the women who followed Jesus would have preferred he stayed with them, but he knew it was for their good that he must die, resurrect and return to the Father.

Thanks for listening,

See you next Sunday,

Ronda

“And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will. And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. (Romans 8:27-28 NLT)