For any number of reasons, life can leave us rough around the edges, with nothing immediately attractive or appealing on the surface. And unfortunately many will simply judge us on our initial impressions without taking the time to discover our true heart. While others might refuse to see beyond our unappealing features, we must never forget our original dignity beneath the beast.
In the story of Beauty and the Beast, the Beast is a hideous character longing for someone to see past his outward appearance to love the true him. And the glory of his original form is only revealed after Beauty offers her true love to him.
And this pattern of desire seems to play out in many of our lives as well.
For instance, on the surface we might be prideful, angry, and selfish. And our beastly interactions with others will naturally tend to repel them away. But we know this is not who we really are – our emotions and bad habits just make us prone to regularly mess things up. We long for others to see the true goodness still in our hearts.
But, to be fair, while others can help along the way, we must also do our part to remember the original glory God has given us to reveal. And we don’t get to downplay or otherwise bypass the consequences of our sins when in beast-mode. Others do well to keep their distance when we consistently and willfully give into the Beast.
All the same, we get to shed many of our unattractive features as we live in the truth of who God has called us to be. And we don’t have to wait on others to see this, though it will quickly become self-evident in all our relationships.
In the end, while this world might leave you rough around the edges, remember who you are beneath the beast, and courageously reveal the goodness God has given you to reveal.
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