Reflections

But now you must get rid of all such things—anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive language from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have stripped off the old self with its practices and have clothed yourselves with the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge according to the image of its creator. In that renewal there is no longer Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and free; but Christ is all and in all!  Colossians 3:9-10

When I was a teenager, I couldn't pass by a reflective surface without looking in it.  Even for girls who don't particularly like what they see, this is often a habit as we try to figure out who we are and what we love about ourselves.   Since then, my love of the shiny has waned, and I tend to avoid them. I typically don't have the time to fix whatever I might find wrong when I look.  

What concerns me more now that I'm in my forties is what I reflect.  Do I reflect the world around me with its sinful divisions and hateful opinions?  Do I reflect the anxiety of those around me whose striving and avoidance never ends?  Do I reflect the priorities of the camera that sees beauty and youth as the ultimate good?  Or do I reflect the glory of God?  What might that reflection look like?

In this scripture from Colossians, we see that we are renewed in knowledge according to the image of the creator of our new self, and that in that renewal "here is no longer Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and free; but Christ is all and in all!"  We can't reflect the glory of God if we put walls up between ourselves and others.  In properly mirroring God, divisions cease.  

How can we better reflect God's goodness?  What are the cracks in our mirrors?  Pray for God to heal them.  And join us for the journey on Sunday at 11 am.