Pic of the Day

If Only…

If I didn’t have to be at work today, I’d be back in bed. I went to bed last night with an intense migraine, and I woke up with a migraine, though thankfully not as severe as the one I had when I went to bed. I stayed up a little later than usual last night. I’m usually in bed by 10 pm every night. 

Last night though, I’d stayed up to see Victor/Victoria (1982) on TCM. It’s a film I haven’t seen in a long time, and I’ve always been a fan of Julie Andrews. If you’ve never seen it, the musical comedy is about a female singer down on her luck who dresses as a man who dresses as a woman to perform in Paris nightclubs in the 1930s. It’s an interesting movie because of its positive portrayal of gay men. It’s a film worth watching.

After watching the movie, it took a little while to get settled and go to sleep. I wish I’d been able to sleep a little longer this morning, but whenever I wake up with a headache, it’s hard to fall back to sleep. So as I write this, I still have a migraine. I took my medicine, so hopefully I’ll feel better before I head into work. Sometimes, a nice hot shower helps.

I hope everyone has a great week!

Pic of the Day

Appearances

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have rejected him. For God does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

—1 Samuel 16:7

 

I’m sure we all see handsome men every day and think about how good-looking they are. It is often the outward appearance that makes us notice a person. Sometimes, we just catch a glimpse of them. You might see a guy running shirtless as you're driving down the street. I love to people-watch. It’s always nice when you see an attractive person. Like most of us, I enjoy eye candy. Considering the pictures I post, that should be obvious. But, how often have you met a really attractive person, and they have a terrible attitude or personality. 

 

People too often judge the character and worth of someone by their outward appearance. If a person is tall, good-looking, well-built, and tastefully dressed, then he possesses physical qualities that we generally admire and respect. I personally love a guy with good hair and a nice smile. A nice behind isn’t too bad either. People often look at these beautiful people and seek them as leaders, if nothing else than leaders in fitness or fashion. Whatever we see outwardly in a person, God has the unique ability to see inside a person. God knows our true character because he “looks at the heart.”

 

In 1 Samuel 16, the time had come for Samuel to go to the house of Jesse in Bethlehem to anoint Israel’s next king. As Samuel looked at Jesse’s oldest son, Eliab, Samuel was impressed with what he saw and said in 1 Samuel 16:6,  “Surely the Lord’s anointed is before Him!” But God told Samuel in the next verse, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have rejected him. For God does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

 

Saul, Israel’s first king, was tall and handsome. Samuel may have been looking for someone like Saul, and Eliab’s appearance was said to be quite striking. But God had a different man in mind to anoint as Israel’s king. The Lord had earlier revealed to the prophet in 1 Samuel 13:14 that “The Lord has sought for Himself a man after His own heart.” Samuel looked at all seven of Jesse’s older sons, but the Lord rejected them all as His choice for king. God was looking for one who had a faithful heart. David, Jesse’s youngest son, whom they had not even bothered to call, was out tending the sheep. After Samuel passed over the other sons, they sent for David, and the Lord said in 1 Samuel 16:12 “Arise, anoint him; for this is the one!” David was God’s choice—imperfect but faithful, a man after God’s heart. Although the Bible says in the first part of 1 Samuel 16:12 that David was “ruddy, with bright eyes, and good-looking,” David was not considered a striking figure. But David had developed a heart after God. In his time alone in the fields, shepherding the flocks, David had come to know God as his Shepherd (see Psalm 23).

 

Appearances can be deceiving. The outward appearance doesn’t reveal what people are really like. Physical looks don’t show us a person’s value, character, integrity, or faithfulness. Outward qualities are, by definition, superficial. Moral and spiritual considerations are far more important to God and should be more important to us. God looks at the heart. The heart in the Bible is a person’s inner, moral, and spiritual life. Proverbs 4:23 explains, “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life.” The heart is the core, the inner essence of who we are. Luke 6:45 says, “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good, and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” God knows our true selves, and His perspective is higher, deeper, and wiser than ours.

 

King David was far from perfect. He committed adultery and murder (2 Samuel 11). But God saw in David a man of deep, abiding faith who was wholly committed to the Lord. We do not have to be perfect to be a faithful Christian. In David, God saw a man who would depend on the Lord for strength and guidance. God saw a man who would recognize his sin and failure and who would repent and ask the Lord for forgiveness. God saw in David a man who loved his Lord; a man who worshiped his Lord with all his being; a man who experienced God’s forgiveness, and came to understand the depths of God’s love for him. God saw a man with a sincere and personal relationship with his Creator. When God looked at the heart of David, He saw a man after His own heart. Acts 13:22 says, “And when He had removed him, He raised up for them David as king, to whom also He gave testimony and said, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all My will.’”

 

Like Samuel, we can’t see what the Lord sees, and we must rely on Him for wisdom. And we can trust that, when God looks at our hearts, He sees our faithfulness, our true character, and our value as individuals. Sometimes, a person’s outer appearance doesn’t match their inner appearance. Then again, he might just be having a bad day. The point is, that we can’t judge a person by their appearance. We shouldn’t be judging people at all. God is who sees who we truly are. The inner person often comes out in someone when it is too late to see how rotten they are inside. Hate and misery will rot a person from the inside, but love and happiness will allow our inner beauty to shine, no matter what our outward appearance shows.

Pic of the Day

Moment of Zen: Surfers

Pic of the Day

The Audiologist

I don’t have a lot to say today, but I know some of you might want to know how my appointment with the Audiologist went. He said I am having some hearing loss, especially hearing consonants. He told me hearing aids would help with both the hearing loss and the tinnitus. He wants me to see and ENT (otolaryngologist) to get a medical diagnosis because otherwise my health insurance won’t cover the hearing aids. I doubt my insurance will cover much of the cost anyway, and it will probably be an aggravating process.

Pic of the Day

Do You Hear That?

At some point in my life, I don’t remember when it actually started, I began hearing a ringing in my ears. It’s sort of like a high pitched whine all the time. I’m not sure I’ve ever had any point when there was absolutely silence. I just thought it was normal since I seem to have always heard it. Some days it’s like hearing cicadas in my head. If you live in an area with those creepy little hidden bugs, you know how annoying that sound can be. I talked to my doctor about it, and he confirmed what I already knew. I have tinnitus.

 

Often tinnitus is a sign of hearing loss though, from what I’ve read, it’s nor associated with the cause of hearing loss not is it caused by hearing loss. This is what my doctor is most worried about, so I have an appointment with an audiologist this morning.

 

Many people with tinnitus also experience headache disorders, suggesting that one condition may trigger the start of the other. Some scientists believe that tinnitus and headaches could have a feedback loop of one causing the other — or that they could have a common cause. Tinnitus may also trigger migraine episodes. With my migraines I typically have additional symptoms besides pain. I usually become acutely sensitivity to light, sound, or smell*. An estimated 20 percent of people with migraine attacks say they also have tinnitus.

 

While I do not yet know what the audiologist might say or if he’ll have an idea of what is causing the tinnitus, I know that when I have a severe migraine the ringing in my ears seems especially loud. I’ve also known for a while that I often have a difficult time hearing people and have to have them repeat themselves several times before I can figure out what they are saying, and even then, I can’t always tell. I often just smile and nod my head.

 

I’m anxious to hear what the audiologist says today.

 

 

* When I have a migraine, my sense of smell becomes particularly sensitive. If someone comes into the museum and is wearing perfume or cologne, I can often smell them from the other side of the museum. I always say that I have the nose of a bloodhound. One of my friends says that I have the nose of a pregnant woman.