Mirror, Mirror

Not too long ago my good friends Lisa Troyer and Beth Beechy were hosting our Circle of Friends radio program on 95.9 WNPQ in Canton. Something Beth said has stuck with me since then. "What if we had a mirror that reflected the way God sees us?" I remember a collective gasp in the studio as we thought about that question - 'Wow'.

Think for a minute - what would that look like? What would we see in a mirror that reflected only what God sees? That means seeing ourselves the way God sees us - the way we truly are.

What would we see?

A woman, or man, covered in grace. Covered by Christ's blood and washed clean of our sins - a beautiful bride for Christ.

I don't think we would focus on the details that distract and dismay us - or be able to criticize the things we don't like about ourselves - our height or weight or eye color or hair. We wouldn't see any of those things. It would be all about seeing the 'big picture' - not the minute stuff that irritates us or we compare with other people.

No, this mirror would be a mirror of Truth. No lies here. No shame or fear or sins from the past to haunt us. We wouldn't be looking for the kind of 'beauty' that we look for now - ageless skin, perfect features - I think we would see clear down to our souls - down to the essence of who God made us to be. We would see ourselves as God created us.

Wow. That would be pretty powerful.

We may not have a physical mirror like that - but when we look into the Word of God it reflects our lives through the mirror of God's truth. We can see ourselves as we really are because the Bible reveals it to us. But there's more! It's not enough to simply see ourselves as we are - the good, the bad, the truth of how God sees us - we have to do something about it!

James tells us that 'Those who hear God's teaching and do nothing are like people who look at themselves in a mirror. They see their faces and then go away and quickly forget what they looked like.' (James 1:23-24)

It sometimes seems like a balancing act. We must not 'think of ourselves more highly than we ought' (Rom 12:3) but we also should never cheapen the sacrifice Christ paid on the cross to bring us His mercy and grace - 'where sin abounded, grace abounded much more' (Rom. 5:20)

What do you see when you look in the mirror? Paul saw himself as the chief among sinners (1 Tim 1:15) but he also saw himself as covered in grace - 'by the grace of God I am what I am' (1 Cor 15:10) and tells us to follow his example (Phil 3:17)

Can you say with Paul, "follow me as I follow Christ"? Can you offer the grace you have received to others? Will you move from gazing into the mirror of His truth to becoming a refection of Him yourself?

All for Him,

Missy