For my blog this week, I thought I would share a poem that I wrote a few years ago…
What do you see when you look at me? Is it just a jar of clay? Is it merely a jug well worn with age, That’s clearly past its day? Do you only see the faded paint, And the cracks around the base? Is your focus caught by the graying rim, And the lines about the face? Is the top too small or bottom too wide? Is the shape not what you like? Do your eyes stare only at the scars of use? And do imperfections fill your sight? Perhaps a change is needed To fully understand. If the surface is what stops your gaze, You don’t see who I am. Take a moment to look inside And consider what is there Forget the wrinkles and the bumps And all the graying hair. Look only at the Christ in me And all that it entails. Think solely with the love of God That for me, never fails. See through the tender eyes of God, A child He calls His son. Consider what a price He paid To have me for His own. Disregard the shallow view Which is all the world can see. Fill your thoughts with what God says And so, walk in liberty. Again I ask, Oh looking glass, What is it that you see? If the surface is what stops your gaze, Then you’re missing the best of me.
Sometimes we are our own worst critic because when we look in the mirror, we don’t always like what we see. A shallow view can do us a great disservice because it misses the most important part of who we are. Our exterior is merely a container for the wonderful qualities that make us unique and lovely. If we look only at the surface, we might not see things like kindness or honesty or integrity. And those are the types of things that make us truly beautiful.
I was looking at photos of my family and thinking of how beautiful they all are. Yet, I still had a negative opinion about myself. I asked myself why? And I realized that I looked at my family with loving eyes, but I didn’t look at myself the same way. It often seems like we are good at looking at others through our eyes of love, but when it comes to ourselves, we miss the mark. So I began my quest to learn to look at myself the way that the Bible says God looks at me.
God loves His children more than we can fathom. He looks at us through eyes full of that love. When we look at ourselves like He does, we will begin to see the REAL us. Our reflection will be that of God’s opinion of us. We will begin to appreciate all the wonderful things that we have and are because of all that God has given us. The beauty of God’s love will shine in our face. And best of all, we will see it (and so will everyone else). No longer will we see a shallow version of ourselves, but we’ll see what God meant for us to be.
1 John 3:1
Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God…
Note to my readers: You are lovely inside and out. Thanks for continuing with me on my journey.