Have You Looked in the Mirror Lately?
Jim and I went out for breakfast recently and, while we were enjoying our breakfast, a woman came in who, I would guess, was middle aged. She was rather large and was wearing really short shorts and a skimpy top. The thought crossed my mind – have you looked in a mirror lately?
However, this is not a post about immodest apparel or even one about judging people by what they are wearing or even what they are doing. It’s so easy to do that and come away from it thinking that we are better somehow than others.
It is a post about something that has been occupying my mind a great deal lately. It is about looking into the mirror of MY life and asking myself how I “look” to those people with whom I come into contact.
How do I “look” to my physical family? When they look at me, do they see a woman who looks happy and content, or do they see a woman who has allowed the troubles of this world to influence her life? Our faces and our bodies often express how we are really feeling. When I take time to look in the mirror at myself, and, if I am honest with myself, I can see what I project to my physical family. My husband, my children, and my grandchildren can “read” the look on my face, and they can hear in my voice how I really feel about certain things. The wise man, Solomon, said it this way: “A glad heart makes a cheerful face, but by sorrow of heart the spirit is crushed” (Proverbs 15:13).
How do I “look” to my spiritual family? I would love to think that my spiritual family would always see me as a loving, kind, forgiving woman who is full of grace for others. But when I look into my own mirror, I know there have been times when that was not the case. At times, I see some teens who need to heed God’s word concerning dress or language or just faithfulness in general, but I fail to look into the mirror of my life and realize that I have also failed in many areas. Maybe it’s those young couples who aren’t raising their children the way that I think they should, or keeping up with their responsibilities in services, and I fail to think back on a younger woman who also failed at times to do those same things. My vantage point now is from years of experience, but their vantage point is the here and now.
Am I saying that I shouldn’t try to help them as they grow and develop in their Christianity? No! A thousand times NO! What I am saying is that the way I present myself to them in my words and actions will make or break my relationship with these younger Christians. I need to remember that I also needed help along the way, and still do on many days when I look into my mirror of life. The writer of Hebrews says it very well: “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (Hebrews 10:24-25, emphasis added).
How do I “look” to the world around me? I come into contact on almost a daily basis with people I do not know and who do not really know me. What they see me doing, and what they hear come out of my mouth will make an impression. Have you ever seen someone act in an unbecoming way in Walmart? Have you heard someone say something vulgar or offensive at a little league ballgame? Probably all of us would answer “yes” to those questions. But what about my behavior and the words that come out of my mouth. I never plan to be rude or disrespectful, and I certainly don’t intend for anything vulgar to come out of my mouth, but have I said or done things that made me “look” like the world and not like a Christian? You see, when I examine my life, I realize that I have done things that are unbecoming as a Christian, and those who saw or heard those actions or words, were not drawn closer to Christ.
Jesus gave us a great lesson on this when He said, “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them…” (Matthew 7:12).
I’ve been “looking” into my mirror lately and praying for God’s help in seeing a clear image and making the corrections I need to make. I don’t want to just hear God’s word and not be a doer of it. I want to see a woman who truly wants to be loving, kind, forgiving and gracious. I will only see those things if I continue to look into God’s word for my guidance.
Have you looked in the mirror lately???
“For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.” (James 1:23-25, emphasis added).
To Receive Every Article from A Legacy of Faith through Email or Free, Click Here
AUTHOR: Donna Faughn
