I was probably the only one not impressed with Versailles. Honestly, I’m rarely moved by man-made establishments and I’m even more disinterested in tourist locations and the crowds that come with them. While I can understand that many people find Versailles to be breathtaking in all its extravagance, what is the point? The halls full of marble were the very halls where hate and vengeance were plotted. The royal bed chambers with fine linens were the very places where adultery and incest happened. Sex was commonly referred to as commerce and people were used like currency. The gardens in all their natural beauty are where people walked around sharing gossip about each other. The balconies are where the rich stood in all their gluttony and greed and looked down on those starving and living in sickness with no compassion.

Louis XIV was so self-absorbed that he mandated elaborate ceremonies and procedures that centered around him waking up in the morning. This was known as the Lever. He literally forced people to come watch him wake up every morning because he was so narcissistic! However, none of the outward show and elaborate ceremonies and decorations could prevent or hide what kind of king he really was. The last years of his life were marked by a devastating war that he had started, a famine, and the deaths of all his direct descendants apart from his great-grandson.

The life of a spirit-empowered leader should first and foremost be focused inward. Constantly throughout the Bible we are told that God looks at the heart of man. He cares about our thought life and the things that grow and linger within our heart. God is not fooled or impressed by outward appearances or outward actions. He knows what really goes on inside and that’s what really matters. God is less concerned with us being flashy and more concerned with us being whole, healed, and pure. With that said, we do live in a world where first impressions are often based on outward appearance. Believers should present themselves in a way that reflects Christ and His goodness and beauty. However, they should never use outward extravagance as a way to hide inward dysfunction.