But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it. James 1:22-25 (NLT)
Wow! This passage includes another reminder of the blessing of obedience, but it’s not where I want to focus today. Nope! I want to tell you what I’ve learned about the importance of checking the mirror.
Several years ago, I was given a physical understanding of this spiritual truth.
Back then, our daughter’s family lived in the area. It was convenient whenever I was going downtown because we got to visit before they dropped me at the Metro station for my traffic-free ride into D.C.. From there, it was a short walk to meet George at work. Then we’d stroll down the boardwalk to the baseball stadium.
This particular Friday, I was running behind for a date night ballgame. I pulled on a cute but cool skort, shucked my jersey over my head, brushed my hair in front of the bathroom mirror, grabbed up my bag, and dashed out the door.
Traffic on I-66 was thick, but I was pulling into our daughter’s driveway with plenty of time to spare. I parked, pulled out my lipstick, smeared some on, and leaned over to check my lips. The reflection in my rearview mirror brought tears of horror and self-annoyance to my eyes.
My morning had started out fairly routine. I ate, read my Bible, went for my morning swim, showered, slapped on moisturizer, and left it to “dry” while I did my chores.
Mind you, I never go out without the protection of foundation on my face. I especially don’t go on a date with my hubby without the added benefit of color. But today I’d looked into the mirror without seeing what the mirror revealed about me. I had never put on any foundation or color!
Thankfully, our daughter saved the day with the basics of foundation, blush, and mascara. Protection and color. Whew!
Okay, now that you’ve enjoyed a chuckle, let’s talk about why we look in a mirror. To see ourselves, right?
God’s word is like a mirror. It shows us the truth about ourselves. God is Creator! He’s the definer of truth. Jesus — God in the flesh — is Truth.
There are two ways I can fool myself when reading my Bible. Both leave me walking away unaware of what I look like in the mirror of God’s word.
One, I’m fooling myself when my mind is on something else entirely while reading my Bible. Like when I was brushing my hair and thinking about my need to get on the road. I totally missed what the mirror would’ve shown me; I didn’t have on my foundation and color!
Two, I’m fooling myself when I use the mirror of God’s word to look at someone else. George and I often stand side by side to brush our teeth. I usually spend more time looking at him than I do looking at myself.
Both are harmful when we’re looking into the Mirror of God’s word.
When I am not really thinking about what I’m reading, I don’t see my attitudes and choices through the filter of God’s word.
When I focus on others while I’m reading, I’m in danger of becoming critical, judgmental, and condemning of them and their choices.
Both leave me walking away deceived (fooling myself). Yes, I’ve read my Bible. Cha-ching! Check that off the list for today! But…
Bottom line?
It’s not enough to consistently read God’s word. I must do what He says is right or I’m just fooling myself!
LORD, thank You for the truth of Your word. Please don’t let me read Your word with half a mind. Please don’t let me deflect your truth toward others, but help me reflect Your truth through obedience. Do not let me fool myself, but walk in the freedom and blessings of obedience.
And LORD, for those reading this today, give them a desire to read their Bibles. Help them see themselves in the mirror of Your word. And protect them from the accusations and condemnation of our enemy. Thank You, LORD Jesus. Amen.
Holy Spirit helps us understand the truth of what we read in the Bible. He is every Jesus-follower’s God given Helper. Are you a Jesus-follower, or do you only know about Jesus? If you’re not sure, you can use the steps in this link to be sure. https://peacewithgod.net/mobile/?utm_source=Microsoft&utm_medium=CPC&utm_term=HowToGoToHeaven&utm_campaign=USPWGMobileSearchMic
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, a Division of Tyndale House Ministries, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Zoë, thank you for reminding us to never measure our value by the opinion of others. You’re right! It’s only God’s perspective that counts. He sees the motive of our hearts which goes far beyond what the people around us see. Using His word as our mirror, is the way He reveals the motives of our hearts to us.
Thank you for sharing this perspective. And thank you for sharing the Alessia Cara song, Scars to Your Beautiful. Learning to live in our new identity as Jesus-followers takes a lifetime. We don’t want to be condemning of ourselves or others as we learn. And we never want to fall into the trap of measuring ourselves by the opinion of others.
I loved this post, mostly because I don’t really wear makeup out. It made me think a lot about what the world implies. Sometimes the world says you should look at yourself make yourself look pretty! Then the world says, don’t worry about what you look like, only on the inside does it really matter. I honestly have never really had a problem with how I look, maybe when I’m unsure about a shirt, but I don’t dwell on how I could look prettier If I put on this or wore that or acted like them. It makes me think of a really powerful song. Unfortunately the artist has drifted away from the Lord, but I felt I should still share this song. The song is called, ‘Scares to your beautiful’ by Alessia Cara. I love to share this song with others. I have many friends who really try and look pretty all the time, and honestly, It’s really sad to see that! I feel that even If you don’t feel pretty, of feel like you are the ugliest person in the world, just know that there is a God who loves you. To the person reading this, thank you and I hope you never try to be like the world, because in the long run, we will be in heaven with our Lord and savior.