God Mirror
From mirrors, to phones with front and back cameras. We have access to just about every gadget that reflects our outward appearance and further more, enhances it. What a privilege to be able to check for flaws & perfections by simply taking a trip to the mirror. Or pressing one button on our phone. A privilege and a distraction rather.
But the most important thing that our outer reflection doesn’t reveal is the heart. It’s the very thing that one of the best kings to exist, King David, asked God to search (Psalm 139:23). The heart is the thing God tells us to guard [or watch over] (Proverbs 4:23). Our heart is the very location we ask Jesus to come when we accept salvation. Ironically, God also considers our heart a deceitful puzzle that no one can figure out except God, Himself (Jeremiah 17:9-10).
And since the word tells us that the spirit realm which we can’t see is more real than the physical realm that we can see; wouldn’t this mean that God is our mirror? At least for those of us who are in Christ Jesus. That thought can be both scary and beautiful. As humans, we want to control what is exposed of ourselves. We post what we want people to know, we cover blemishes, facial expressions such as a smile can be counter to how we really feel. But God, He sees all things. He knows our innermost thoughts, secrets, motives, feelings and the aspects of ourselves that are unknown to us. This truth can prompt us to feel scared, relieved or maybe a little of both.
To realize that God sees and knows every aspect of yourself should generate a sense of comfort more than fear. That is if we truly believe He is for us. Since we never see God reserve His love for perfection, we can admit that we are actually the ones who push perfection. Perfect relationships, perfect parenting, perfect in our careers, perfect people. But none of us are good without Jesus. And yet, God still sees, knows, and chooses to love and helps us do the inner work.
Then on the other spectrum of self-righteousness, we have self-depreciation. We get so hard on ourselves for not being where we thought we should be. Our progress goes unnoticed because our eyes are focused on the lives of others who make it look easy. We allow things like our fear, our past, doubts and other people to examine ourselves. We consider God knows everything about us without keeping in mind, that in spite of what He knows, He loves us for who we are. But He also loves us too much to keep us the same. His word says that “God who started this great work in you would keep at it and bring it to a flourishing finish on the very day Christ Jesus appears.” (Philippians 1:6). He keeps working through all the contamination in our hearts. The exposing is necessary for the flourishing, though. He cannot heal what is not revealed. And because again, He is our mirror; He will reveal us to us.
Unlike a mirror, God personally reveals our ways that outwardly look good to us but are not appealing to Him. However, this revealing is not for the sake of God trying to put us down, but to push us down to our knees to pray like David, a humble king did. In Psalm 139:23-24 (The Passion Translation), David prayed, “God, I invite your searching gaze into my heart. Examine me through and through; find out everything that may be hidden within me. Put me to the test and sift through all my anxious cares.”
David, who was considered a man after God’s own heart; still knew that there were issues of his heart, that he himself could not see. He longed for God’s perspective. He longed to be exposed for the sake of being made pure at heart in the eyes of the Lord. What’s more is that David did not attempt to bypass the process. He asked God to search the hidden things, test him and sift through his anxious cares. To sift is the process of isolating what’s useful from what isn’t. Considering this, I understand why God characterized David as a man after His own heart.
I long to be as vulnerable, transparent and humble as David was before God. I too, want to be so intimately consumed with the One Who created and sees me that I invite Him into every room of my heart. We ought to be women who bravely give God full access to sift through us. Us rejecting God’s searching gaze into our hearts, forfeits the privilege of holding God’s hand as He takes us through our many phases of transformation.
Jeremiah 17:9-10 exhorts us that “though the heart is a deceitful puzzle that no one can figure out; God searches the heart and examines the mind. He gets to the heart of the human and to the root of things” [Paraphrased]. God truly makes over this heart of ours and the elements of it. And we need it consistently until Christ returns, completing us into perfection.
He gets to the root. At the root, fear, doubt, pride, trauma, insecurity, envy, hurt, unforgiveness, shame, guilt and all that gunky stuff can be found. But the way our Redeemer cleans us up, uses ugly things for His beautiful purposes, and makes us new, is worth it if we are willing. He, our God, our Refiner, our Purifier makes all things beautiful in His time and in His design.
The question is, will we be women who check our spiritual mirror more than the physical one? We we surrender letting Him make us over. Will we humble ourselves to let Him show us what we cannot see? In a world whose inaccurate advice is, “Follow your heart”; will we be women who instead resolve to give ours to God and follow Him? I am confident that you will. And you’re looking better already!
Let’s pray:
Almighty God, thank You for Your transformative love. Thank You for knowing me better than I know myself yet still choosing to love me more than anyone could. Like David, I invite your searching gaze into my heart. Examine me through and through; find out everything that may be hidden within me. Put me to the test and sift through all my anxious cares. Make me beautiful inside and out, Lord. Remove from me any spirit of offense, guilt, or stubbornness that would cause me to miss what You are doing in me. Be my mirror, O God and show me, me. As You do I know that true godly beauty and excellence will be staring back at me. Thank You God! In Jesus’s name, amen.
