In His Image
by CBC Online on Wednesday, May 16, 2012 at 8:24pm ·
On my way home today I saw a man walking on the other side of the street, and my first thought was, "He looks like Jesus." At least the standard image of Jesus in artwork: bearded and with long hair. (No robe today, but sandals for certain. It's hot already in San Antonio.)
That encounter left me with this thought in my head: that each person we see has a bit of God in them, if we only know where to look. We were all created in God's image, right? Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness." (Genesis 1:26).
And that thought left me with a lesson and a goal: to spend more time looking for the face of God in others. Like many important things, it's simple, but not necessarily easy. But if we took the time to stop and really look at someone else, and used the lens of the Holy Spirit to really see the image of God in them...
What would happen then? Might we not be less inclined to see the bad in people, but instead see the good? Might we not be better able to forgive a slight, whether real or imagined? Might we not be more inclined to offer charity and mercy to someone in need? And might we not be able to see the world in a more positive light, be more optimistic, and trusting, and loving toward others?
How much better to live our lives seeing the best in people, instead of the worst. Seeing the harried father of three rushing from work so as not to miss his youngest child's soccer game, instead of seeing the jerk driver who cut us off. Seeing the stressed-out, overworked boss who's doing her best with a bad situation, instead of seeing the hard-case micro-manager who's out to get us. Seeing the son or daughter who's so preoccupied with their own world of school and work and friends and a new crush that doing chores just gets forgotten, instead of seeing the selfish kid who purposely ignores their responsibilities.
These are the images of God we encounter every day in our lives, and it's up to use to choose how we see them. I pray that we all choose to see them through the lens of the Holy Spirit, and recognize and honor the piece of God that lives within each of them, and within ourselves.
by CBC Online on Wednesday, May 16, 2012 at 8:24pm ·
On my way home today I saw a man walking on the other side of the street, and my first thought was, "He looks like Jesus." At least the standard image of Jesus in artwork: bearded and with long hair. (No robe today, but sandals for certain. It's hot already in San Antonio.)
That encounter left me with this thought in my head: that each person we see has a bit of God in them, if we only know where to look. We were all created in God's image, right? Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness." (Genesis 1:26).
And that thought left me with a lesson and a goal: to spend more time looking for the face of God in others. Like many important things, it's simple, but not necessarily easy. But if we took the time to stop and really look at someone else, and used the lens of the Holy Spirit to really see the image of God in them...
What would happen then? Might we not be less inclined to see the bad in people, but instead see the good? Might we not be better able to forgive a slight, whether real or imagined? Might we not be more inclined to offer charity and mercy to someone in need? And might we not be able to see the world in a more positive light, be more optimistic, and trusting, and loving toward others?
How much better to live our lives seeing the best in people, instead of the worst. Seeing the harried father of three rushing from work so as not to miss his youngest child's soccer game, instead of seeing the jerk driver who cut us off. Seeing the stressed-out, overworked boss who's doing her best with a bad situation, instead of seeing the hard-case micro-manager who's out to get us. Seeing the son or daughter who's so preoccupied with their own world of school and work and friends and a new crush that doing chores just gets forgotten, instead of seeing the selfish kid who purposely ignores their responsibilities.
These are the images of God we encounter every day in our lives, and it's up to use to choose how we see them. I pray that we all choose to see them through the lens of the Holy Spirit, and recognize and honor the piece of God that lives within each of them, and within ourselves.
