May 12, 2006
Theology of the Mirror
How often do you look in the mirror to check your hair? your face? your outfit? Even as a guy; I’d say that I check myself out at least 10 times a day for various reasons. We want to make sure our hair is in place or we aren’t saving part of our lunch for later or just to verify we aren’t a disheveled mess. We do all this in the hopes that we will look presentable to the world; that we won’t look foolish and “gosh darn it people will like us”.
With all the attention we give and time we spend concerned about what the mirror shows of our appearance, how often do you look in the mirror to check your heart? Are you in the habit of examining your heart to make sure that it is presentable? How easy it is for us to ignore that aspect of our daily lives because most people will never get to see that. We can easily hide that away and not worry so much about the disheveled nature of our own hearts and minds.
Like Dorian Gray, we are free to live our lives as we choose and never fully reveal the toll this takes on our hearts to everyone else. We hide it, we ignore it and we try to forget about it. This becomes so apparent and so glaring when it comes to conflict. However; the clarity that arises from these situations will often reveal more about ourselves than we intend.
The failure to genuinely search out and recognize our own contributions to conflict will generally lead to a great deal of finger pointing. “They are to blame – not me!” Sometimes this is true, but often times it is not so clear cut. Often times we have both contributed to the problem and it will take the recognition and repentance of both parties to bring about true reconciliation. This begins with looking in the mirror rather than pointing fingers.
The Apostle Paul reminds us that, “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3: 23). It is especially important to remember that when it comes to resolving conflict. The daily act of examining your heart in the mirror is also a daily reminder of that atoning blood of Jesus Christ. Ignorance of the mirror is not only ignorance of your sinful nature, but also of grace.
Posted by price at May 12, 2006 03:46 PM | TrackBack