Have you ever walked into a mirror?
Don’t be ashamed. I have. It’s perfectly ok. I like to think of myself as a pretty observant person, but this day, I obviously wasn’t…
It happened when I least expected it. I was celebrating a friend’s birthday at the Cincinnati Aquarium in Ohio, minding my own business, doing things normal 9 or 10 year olds do. The last thing on my mind was watching out what for was in front of me. If you haven’t been to this aquarium, they have (or had, it’s been 12+ years since I’ve been there) glass tunnels that you would walk through and look at all the different marine life all around you. At the beginning of each tunnel, they had this decorative arch around the entryway, and it was the same arch at each tunnel. I remember the arches distinctly because I always wondered what it would be like to be able to breathe underwater. These arches were the gateway to a world where I could do just that, or at least pretend to. After what seemed like hours of wandering through the underwater tunnels, we came to what I thought was another tunnel. There was an arch just like every other tunnel. I could see fish swimming all around just like every other tunnel. It must be another tunnel, right?
Step. Step. Step. Step. Step. Smack!
I was so enthralled with the fish I saw that I was oblivious to the fact that I was walking toward myself. The fish that I saw were the fish from the previous tunnel that I had just exited. I hit that mirror without so much as slowing down. I’m pretty sure everyone in the aquarium that day heard me. Who put’s an arch around a mirror anyway!? It’s misleading. I bet the staff at the aquarium had a camera set up taking bets on how many unsuspecting kids would unknowingly meet the same fate as I did.
“Hey John, we got another one! That’s three so far today! This one has a knot on his head…that counts as two!”
This story got me thinking. Mirrors are interesting objects. They reflect everything exactly as it is, unless you have one of those mirrors you find in a fun house that make you look like an Oompa-Loompa or a distant relative of the giraffe. If you look directly at the mirror, you can expect to see what you look like at that moment. My question is, what do people see when they look at you?
An athelete? A geek? A leader? Someone who looks lost? Someone wearing too much makeup?
The thing that not many people realize is that what you show on the outside has a direct relationship with what you have on the inside. And no, I’m not talking about that Instagram-worthy cheeseburger you had for lunch. I’m talking about what’s in your heart. The things you surround yourself with or immerse yourself in directly impact the condition of your heart.
If you knew me at all in high school, you will know that I tried to look a certain way. I tried to be one of the ‘cool’ kids and be liked by everyone. I was deeply involved in sports (basketball in particular) and rap music had become my genre of choice. The lyrics of those songs that I listened to are not something that I would recommend to others, but I claimed I wasn’t listening to rap for the lyrics anyway. I never thought much of it, but I began remembering and memorizing the lyrics of the songs, and after a while, those lyrics began to be ingrained on my heart. As I mentioned earlier, what you show on the outside is directly related to what’s in your heart. I began to use certain words and phrases found in the songs, began dressing a certain way, began treating people differently than I ever thought I would. What I had put in my heart was being mirrored on the outside.
This even shows up in scripture.
“We all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image.” – 2 Corinthians 3:18
Basically, this verse is saying that when we are looking upon the Lord clearly, we begin to be changed into the same image. When we surround and immerse ourself with Jesus, the very character and image of Jesus begins to show in us…we begin to mirror Him. This is something I strive for in my life. That when people see me, they get a glimpse into the love and grace that is freely given in Christ.
So I’ll ask this question again and I want you to really consider it.
What do people see when they look at you?
Fear Not 