Beauty is in the eye of the Beholder

I have heard the statement, "Beauty is in the eye of the Beholder" many times but it isn't until recently that I have fully grasped what that means. Recently while visiting different churches holding conferences and revivals God, The Beholder, has really opened my eyes to the beauty of the church. Sitting towards the back gives me the opportunity to gaze around the room and see the different types of people in attendance. ALL ages, ALL races, ALL sizes, ALL cultures, ALL socio-ecomonic statuses, ALL styles, ALL gathered together in the name of the Lord! I believe that this is the church that blesses God's heart and makes Him smile. I think that we have our preconceived notions of what we think the church should look like and dismiss the idea that the church is supposed to be diverse. Diversity comes in so many forms. Think about Jesus and his twelve disciples. They were in a sense the foundation of the church. Each one of them differing from the other; different personalities (doubting Thomas anyone), different occupations, (Matthew was a tax collector), different, backgrounds,(Peter was married) and different qualities, all united for ONE purpose. This is what the church should be. God gave me a glimpse of what He sees and what He deems as beautiful. Quite frankly it brought me to tears. How He is no respecter of people and loves and accepts EVERYONE. as should we as a church. Whether you are black or white, short or tall, tattooed or not, dressed in the finest or in jeans and a t shirt, smelling fresh or freshly smelly, the diversity is what makes something beautiful. 1 Corinthians 12:18-19 says "He has made many parts for our bodies and has put each part just where He wants it. 19 What a strange thing a body would be if it had only one part! 20 So he has made many parts, but still there is only one body". That means EVERYONE is meant to be a PART of the body of Christ. We are ALL crucial to the church. If you feel like you don't fit in because there is something about you that stands out, that is exactly how it is meant to be! Not that you are meant to feel insecure about who you are, be confident in who God created you as, but rest assured that God intended for you to stand out and contribute your special abilities, or your beauty, to make up the ONE body. The church isn't supposed to be just a foot, but it also needs toes to help that foot stand, Whatever your gift and talent is, that was uniquely made to advance the kingdom of God. Your uniqueness is what the composition of a beautiful church is. Don't allow the enemy to tell you otherwise. Rejoice because you are FEARFULLY and WONDERFULLY made! Your jagged or straight edges are a beautiful piece to the puzzle. The beauty of a church is it's diversity in order for it to fully function as it should and radiate that beauty. I believe that the beauty of an object or person is not in it's similarity to another but rather in it's ability to stand on it's own in diversity. God is looking for a beautiful church. Churches are a dime a dozen these days but a beautiful church, one where anyone can walk into and find someone from all walks of life is very rare. If that is what you are a part of consider yourself truly blessed!