Beauty is truth. Truth, beauty. That is all ye know, and all ye need to know.”
John Keats
If you know me, you know, I love me some beauty.
Flowers. Waterfalls. Trees and bees. Skies and seas. All the scenery. All the beauty. All the time.
It’s one of our core values after all:
SEEK BEAUTY AND TRUTH EVERYWHERE.
But this week it’s been hard. There’s been a lot of ugliness. If you’ve been on your phone or turned the TV or your computer even for a few moments, you know exactly what I’m talking about.
Of course I’m talking about the assassination of Charlie Kirk. And the reactions to his assassination.
And I had a few thoughts about that.
I made a little video. And I wanted to share it with you here.
Now of course I have a feeling a lot of you are probably on the same page as me. But not all of you are. I know. And I’m so grateful for every single one of you. And I hope if you disagree with me that you keep sticking around. Because if there’s one take away from this awful, awful week, for me- it’s that we can’t stop talking to each other. We can’t stop listening to each other.
We must resist what is evil.
Hate is evil. Justifying hate in the name of taking the moral high ground is evil. Spreading lies and letting our opinions be informed by curated soundbytes that present a false narrative, without even being open to hearing the full story, is evil. Shouting down our neighbor with hateful rhetoric, and rejoicing in their demise, is evil. Pointing the finger at everyone else in the world while refusing to look within… is evil.
We must uphold what is beautiful.
Life is beautiful. Truth is beautiful. Curiosity and a teachable spirit is beautiful. Humility is beautiful. Listening is beautiful. Encouragement is beautiful. Seeking truth is beautiful. Speaking the truth in love is beautiful. Sticking up for, even laying our lives down for not only our friends, but our ideological enemies, is beautiful. Looking inward and asking God to help us deal with the ugliness of our own hearts… is beautiful.
If we can do these two things, perhaps we will be on the road to healing.
If we can’t, the days will only get darker. And uglier.
Will you join me, friend, on the road to healing?
Beauty is truth. Truth, beauty. That is all ye know, and all ye need to know.”
-John Keats
“Greater love has no one than this:
John 15:13
to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”
Isle of misfits 