The Upper Room Daily Devotionals in Nashville, Tennessee, United States "Looking for the Beauty" for Friday, 27 January 2017 with Scripture Matthew 25:31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, accompanied by all the angels, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be assembled before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates sheep from goats. 33 The ‘sheep’ he will place at his right hand and the ‘goats’ at his left.
34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you whom my Father has blessed, take your inheritance, the Kingdom prepared for you from the founding of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you made me your guest, 36 I needed clothes and you provided them, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ 37 Then the people who have done what God wants will reply, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and make you our guest, or needing clothes and provide them? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison, and visit you?’ 40 The King will say to them, ‘Yes! I tell you that whenever you did these things for one of the least important of these brothers of mine, you did them for me!’
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“The King will reply [to the righteousness], ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’”[Matthew 25:40 (NIV)]
At the beginning of our trip to Western Australia, I was on a mission to see wildflowers. As we drove around, I scanned the edges of the roadside where I’d seen them on a previous visit. But because we were travelling earlier in the season and after a period of insufficient rainfall, many of the plants had not blossomed.
Then a regular traveller told us, “Look in the gravel heaps off the road. You need to go farther in; you can’t always see them from the road.” We took her advice and found wildflowers in the most unlikely places. We discovered them among rocks and gravel — tiny flowers in crevices, their beauty brightening up the sometimes-barren landscape. We never expected to find such beauty in places so hot and dry.
In a similar way, sometimes we don’t see the beauty of people when we first encounter them. Wherever he travelled, Jesus often associated with the outcasts of society, the unloved, those considered unclean, and he calls us to do the same. When we take time to look deeper, we can find the beauty and worth in every person.
The Author: Lenore Warton (New South Wales, Australia)
Thought for the Day: Today I will show God’s love to someone who seems unlovable.
Prayer: Loving God, help us take the time to see the beauty you see in others. In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
Prayer focus: Travelers
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34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you whom my Father has blessed, take your inheritance, the Kingdom prepared for you from the founding of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you made me your guest, 36 I needed clothes and you provided them, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ 37 Then the people who have done what God wants will reply, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and make you our guest, or needing clothes and provide them? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison, and visit you?’ 40 The King will say to them, ‘Yes! I tell you that whenever you did these things for one of the least important of these brothers of mine, you did them for me!’
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“The King will reply [to the righteousness], ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’”[Matthew 25:40 (NIV)]
At the beginning of our trip to Western Australia, I was on a mission to see wildflowers. As we drove around, I scanned the edges of the roadside where I’d seen them on a previous visit. But because we were travelling earlier in the season and after a period of insufficient rainfall, many of the plants had not blossomed.
Then a regular traveller told us, “Look in the gravel heaps off the road. You need to go farther in; you can’t always see them from the road.” We took her advice and found wildflowers in the most unlikely places. We discovered them among rocks and gravel — tiny flowers in crevices, their beauty brightening up the sometimes-barren landscape. We never expected to find such beauty in places so hot and dry.
In a similar way, sometimes we don’t see the beauty of people when we first encounter them. Wherever he travelled, Jesus often associated with the outcasts of society, the unloved, those considered unclean, and he calls us to do the same. When we take time to look deeper, we can find the beauty and worth in every person.
The Author: Lenore Warton (New South Wales, Australia)
Thought for the Day: Today I will show God’s love to someone who seems unlovable.
Prayer: Loving God, help us take the time to see the beauty you see in others. In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
Prayer focus: Travelers
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