SEEING THE EXTRAORDINARY

Month: November 2016

  • Cloudy Mirrors

    Mirrors can be powerful instruments.  They can help us to see ourselves as we get ready to meet the world.  They can help us to identify our “trouble areas” and see where we might need to work on things.  There is a problem though.  It would seem that too many of us have cloudy mirrors.  We do not actually see our real reflection.  We instead see what we want to see staring back in the mirror.

    How can that be?  We seem to have no trouble seeing others.  We seem to have no problem making judgments about other people…the way they dress, the way they did their hair, the way they carry themselves.  We have no trouble identifying others imperfections.  And often, we wonder if they looked in the mirror before they walked out of the house.  We wonder if there mirror was more than cloudy.  After all…we would never leave the house looking like THAT.

    But maybe it’s not our mirror at all that is the problem.  I don’t think it is our eyesight.  That can be a problem as we age, but I’m thankful for glasses to help us along.  I don’t think it is the size of our mirror or where it is in our house.  The problem is with us.

    There is a Bible verse that has always been difficult for me.  It is in the book of James, chapter 1.  James is writing how believers should be people of action, be a part of the game…not just sitting on the sidelines waiting for others to do the work.  That’s a difficult enough statement.  But, he continues to say that those who sit on the sidelines are like those who see themselves in a mirror.  When they walk away, they immediately forget what they look like.  As I have read this scripture, I always thought…how does someone forget what they look like.  Sometimes we might want to forget what we look like…we all have those “rough” days.  But, how do we forget?

    And it dawned on me…That’s the answer…that’s how our view in the mirror becomes so skewed.  We can be so focused on what other people are doing (or not doing)…we can be constantly criticize or judge…we can point out the faults of everyone else… That we forget who we are…or we create this image of how good or bad we are that isn’t even real.  We forget that we are to be people who are of action.  We forget to take a good long look at ourselves and what we are doing.  If we, as Christians, spent as much time working for God…focusing on what he wants us to do…rather than being critical of everyone around us…we might actually see change happen.

    That image in the mirror might actually become clearer.  We might see the beautiful creation made and fashioned by God staring at us in the mirror.  And that beautiful creation is not only fashioned by God, but created for a purpose.  Our purpose is not to judge everyone else…but rather to do as we are called and created.

    It is true that we can only change ourselves…and to change the world, it begins with me.  Maybe today, I wipe that mirror clean and begin to take a long, hard look at me.  How has God created and fashioned me to do his work?  What am I doing for him?  How am I living?  What message am I sending?  How am I loving my neighbor?  How am I living out what Jesus taught?

    May we stop at the mirror today, truly see ourselves as beautiful and created by God, and walk away serving others… Loving God and loving our neighbor…regardless of what they look like.

  • Put down your stone…a call to Christians

    It is the day after the Presidential Election.  We are a nation divided.  The narrow victory certainly tells many stories about how our country feels.  There has been so much divisiveness and dissension.  It has been a time of turmoil as we have watched candidates debate, argue, and even fist fight.  With such a narrow victory, the next president certainly has his work cut out for him to unite this country.  That is all stating the obvious.

    What is also obvious is the underlying current of hate and anger that has been simmering and occasionally spewing to the top.  There has been name calling and people made to feel belittled for supporting one candidate or the other.  There have been phrases like…if you vote for ____, then you are just stupid (or an idiot or whatever other negative connotation you can come up with).  Phrases like…you can’t possibly be a Christian and vote for _____.  Or, who in their right mind would vote for _____.  Honestly, it has felt more like being on the playground in middle school than being adults “debating” the issues for the future of our country.  It definitely is a sign that many Americans lack the basic skill of effective communication and instead, lean towards bullying and fear mongering.

    The most disheartening of it all for me is that much of this hate, anger, belittling, and casting of fear has come from my Christian brothers and sisters.  On social media, on the TV, in ads, and in person, one cannot tell if a person is a Christian or not by actions or by their love.  I have heard just as many negative comments and hateful spewing from Christians as from anyone else.  And since Jesus wasn’t running (or anyone who even resembles his actions or values), there should not have been a “Christian vote.”  Since the vote was nearly 50/50, that would suggest that there are Christians who love the Lord with all their heart on BOTH sides.  What a concept.  It has been difficult to see the love of Christ show up in anything that has been done over the last few months.  Apparently when the heat is turned up, Christians don’t seem to react any different than anyone else…and that is painful and sad.

    So, the election is over (and we all say a collective THANK GOD).  But damage has been done.  Christians, it is time for us to drop the stones that we have been casting and find unity.  We must find a way to come together as God’s people to do God’s work REGARDLESS of who is president or whether or not we voted for him.  For me, it starts with humility, looking to Christ as my guide.  We must seek forgiveness, both from God for the way we have acted, and from our neighbors for the stones that have been cast.  We must turn our hearts and minds to Christ and to LOVING OTHERS.   We cannot join hands in this world while holding stones.  We cannot offer a helping hand or help a brother or sister up while carrying the stones.  We cannot be the hands and feet of Christ while burdened down with our anger and fear and hatred.  We have to drop it all in surrender to the ONE that can bring us together.  Regardless of whether or not this country unites, Christians are called to be different, to act different, and to love different.

    Brothers and Sisters, may we drop our stones today seeking forgiveness, joining hands with our neighbors in love and unity, and moving forward doing the work of Christ.  If you are looking for a change in this country…this is where it really begins…

    And may it begin with me.