Mirror, Mirror

Mirrors are fascinating. Just try putting a mirror in front of an infant and watch his or her reaction. You will see a variety of expressions, from quizzical, to fearful, to excited. My children are still at the stage where mirrors are an invitation to make funny faces or perform other self-amusing antics. They never consider using mirrors to examine themselves to see if they have effectively removed all of the morning crust from the corners of their eyes and mouths or if their hair looks like "who did it, why'd they do it, and please don't do it again!"

Once they reach the teenage years, however, I fully expect to have to perform surgery to remove them from their mirrors--or for that matter any reflective object that will allow them to admire themselves.

Even as adults, most of us wouldn't think of leaving the house without at least one glance in the mirror to make sure we are "presentable." Those brief glances have spared us the embarrassment of leaving the house with a hair roller still hanging on, remnants of breakfast still hanging on, or clothing inadvertently caught up and hiked up in places that simply shouldn't be mentioned.

With all of this reflecting and glancing going on, how often do we really take a good long look at ourself in the mirror in an effort to see past the surface and into the depth of who we truly "are"?

We are made in the image of God, the Great I AM. So, how do we reflect that image in our lives?If we are honest with ourselves, we probably reflect more of the projections of others and the trappings of this world than the image of our creator. We may reflect the desperation of trying to find a mate or approval from our mate by wearing revealing clothing or doing other things that scream, "Look at me!" (or for the church folks, "Do not pass me by!") Some people may do just the opposite and withdraw or display anti-social, rebellious behavior that says, "Don't look at me! Just walk on by!"

I wonder if some of us become addicted to piercings and tatooing (and if we can afford it, plastic surgery) because we are not pleased with what we see in the mirror. We think we are not desireable enough, so perhaps a little ink here, a little stud there, a little lift here, a little tuck there and we will finally be good enough--but for who or what? We are already fearfully and wonderfully made by God. Why isn't that good enough?

Let's be honest, when we were little children running wild and free, how many of us grew up desiring to have bodies filled with silicone, permanent ink or metal studs? How many of us planned to fry our brains with drugs or our lungs with nicotine? The media has paraded those images in front of us for so long that we started thinking that the desire for those things started from within us. Those images were projected onto us. I don't recall any of my childhood friends mentioning those things as personal, admirable goals in life when we were little.

Look in the mirror today. Take off the rose-colored glasses and take a good, long look. Be honest. If you see desperation, bitterness, depression, jealousy, insecurity, hatred, lust, impatience, conceit, the need to "fit in", or anything else that doesn't reflect the image of God, it's time to make an adjustment. The adjusment is not demanding that everyone "accept me for who I am!" if who you've become is not who God says you are.

When we are ready to know what we really look like, we will look to God's Word for it has the power to reflect the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. So help us God.