Reflections expose a beauty that looks familiar yet also not quite what we expected. A walk by the water is a journey of reflections on a sunny day. Majestic trees become smaller as you peer at them in the water. The sun’s light bounces off the water as if it is trying to stretch from water to sky. The beauty of the objects reflected in the water take on an ethereal allure that captivates as well stops you mid step to get a closer look. But I wonder if you feel the same way about your own reflection in the mirror. Does it captivate you to take a second look? Let’s take a closer look at reflections in a mirror today.
As you see from my pictures, I truly am amazed at the beauty in reflections. When I apply this to myself, not so much. My morning begins catching my reflection as I stumble out of bed toward the bathroom. Believe me, some mornings it’s enough to have me running back to bed and hiding under the covers. God continues to gently pull the covers away to teach me I am beautiful and loved. He beckons me to look deeper at who I am and His purpose for me, which requires gazing into the mirror for a closer look.
I am learning over and over that our purpose and plan come with a responsive action. It is not hiding our reflection from others but letting it be the light that God meant for it to be. Are there areas in your life that require you to do more than talk about what you are going to do? Is it time to move from purpose to action?
God has given me hope as my one word this year. Hope in blessings, hope in Him and hope that my future is in His hands. God has also provided an undercurrent that is pushing me to “go big or go home”. That’s the scary part of looking deep into my reflection.
[Tweet “There is strength in opening our hearts in a stance of vulnerability and transparency.”]
My church began a gathering called Undivided several weeks ago. Our campus pastor was called by God to begin the process of racial reconciliation. It is meeting in the church setting to begin conversations, develop a connection that leads to relationships, the chance to seek forgiveness and speak in love and grace. When God calls you to it, He brings Himself into the midst to lead the way. My simple words cannot begin to describe the strength of opening our hearts in a stance of vulnerability and transparency. Sharing our stories on a deeper level has exposed individual reflections in a mirror. But a beginning needs to play out into a middle and an end reaching the goal that God has had in mind all along. The goal that we accept all people as children of God, continue to speak in love and serve others as a gift to them and God.
[Tweet “Allow your beginnings to play out into a middle, stretching toward an end that is God-ordained.”]
I love the boldness that God calls each of us to as we pray and live out His plan for us. I have two online friends who pray the prayer of boldness in the area of racial reconciliation. Deidra Riggs provides specific steps to make small changes in your own community. She never fails to inspire and embolden me to go further than saying I am going to do something and then never follow through. My other friend, Lisha Epperson, writes with a grace that is only superseded by how she lives her life. She reminds us we live in a flawed world, but also shares how God puts us in community to “engage each other over things we don’t understand”.
It all starts with our own reflection in the mirror. It is looking closely and digging deeper into who we are and who God has called us to be. It is taking that first step but not stopping there because we have only stepped into the beginning. It is allowing God to answer those bold prayers with His answers and letting His answers be enough.
Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely. 1 Corinthians 13:12
Pray boldly, embrace the answers and love the reflection in the mirror because God is trusting with you with new beginnings, middles and ends.
Will you go big or go home into your own new beginning by letting God lead you toward the middle and end?
Blessings of grace along the way,
Mary
Blessed to be linking up with these fabulous ladies!
and Dawn for Grace Moments
Hello, friend 🙂 I’m a little behind with my visiting this week. I’m so glad I bookmarked this post to come back to – challenging and inspiring! What your church is doing sounds radical, and amazing! I’m looking forward to hearing more about the journey. Your reflections shots are beautiful, Mary, such a JOY to visit here today.
Thank you June! My biggest struggle is now that we have started how will we continue the work that God has ordained in each of us. It’s a lot to wrap my brain around. I do know that God blesses every step we take and we just need to continue to come to Him in trust and with our needs.Love having you visit, June!
Mary,
Your gentle heart shines bright here, the passion to follow His bold call and to be a catalyst for change that heals hearts. I love that. I love that you are encouraging others to read Lisha and Deidra’s words, too.
Thank you for linking up at #GraceMoments this week! I am so happy that you were there.
Blessings!
Dawn
Your words blessed me today, Dawn! Following God’s bold call starts with each of us and it is only by His strength that I am able to take a step forward. May we all look closely at our own reflections in the mirror and ask ourselves-why shouldn’t it be us? I am so blessed by your link up and for your kind words!
Mary,
Go big or go home … God always calls us to be all in, doesn’t He? He’s not satisfied with our lukewarm, it’s good enough ways of doing things. I’m so glad I visited today for #RaRaLinkup.
God does call us to be all in for Him. The thing is He does this for us all the time. He treats us as if we are the only one because all of His attention is on us. It is a beautiful thing. Thank you for being here Donna! So good to see you!
Mary, you continue to ask the needful searching questions and draw us into a deeper dialogue with God. These words especially hit home hard for me: “God continues to gently pull the covers away to teach me I am beautiful and loved.” How swift I am to turn away from physical mirrors, for similar reasons as Jeanne says here. Yet God invites me to turn often toward the mirror of His word and believe its healing truth as I read and absorb. It’s challenging and needful to see ourselves as we are reflected in God’s eyes. But until we do we will always live less than lives in our own. Thank you for the wisdom in your words, your transparent heart and beautiful images. All help to convey the truth you share. Blessings. <3
I always love how you dig deeper when you read my words. You never fail to provide a perspective that I need to hear. I needed to be reminded tonight to turn toward the mirror of God’s word. That is where we will find truth. I am thanking God that His words have spoken to you in a deeper way and have challenged you to look more closely at yourself. You heart is beautiful and so willing to let God in. That is a beautiful beginning, my friend!
Hi Mary! Love that ‘go big or go home’. Yes, I do think God is leading me to do good things for myself, and I am balking. Time to take His call seriously, and do what I profess. Listen and do!
It sounds like your church is starting a wonderful program. I hope you will all be blessed abundantly!
Ceil
Thank you for these words. I am glad to hear you share that God is leading you too. I am quick to say “no” because I don’t feel qualified but God is persistent. I pray that you and I both let God speak into us and follow His lead wherever it may go. Blessings!
This is lovely, Mary! Reflections are so intriguing – I really love photos that have the reflections of clouds or mountain on water. New beginnings are so exciting, but, you’re right, they only matter if we work on through the middle (usually the hardest part!) toward an end result. I’m glad I linked up near you at Dawn’s place today.
Thank you for joining me here Kristin and for sharing your insight. I am intrigued by all reflection pictures and that has led me to ponder our own reflections. I imagine this topic could expand quite a bit. Let’s pray boldly that we are not satisfied with the surface of the reflection but desire to go deeper into what the real picture is.
Deidra and I had a heart to heart at Allume, in the hall, outside the restroom! I had to have a personal “come to Jesus” with her because Holy Spirit wouldn’t leave me alone. She was gracious and we parted friends! 😉
Interesting! I think I will need to hear more about this sometime. The Holy Spirit does have a way of moving us in the direction that He knows is best!!! Love that you joined me here!
Mary, this is my second time through your post. I’m reading and re-reading because I see so much that needs doing and I love the boldness of your call to action — I think I’m stuck in wondering where to start.
Thanks for being used by the Spirit of God in putting me here in this pondering place.
Thank you for sharing so honestly, Michele! There is so much that needs to be done, but I also know that God is calling each of us to do the work and none is us should feel burdened to shoulder it all. I’m not sure that I know where to begin either, but I do know that saying “yes” to getting involved in my church’s racial reconciliation program was my beginning. Now I am not sure where to go from here. May we both trust God to show us the way whether we are just beginning, moving toward the middle or wondering how to finish well.
Oh how looking in the mirror becomes such a courageous thing! We find who we really are, how much we need Jesus, and who we were created to be. When we live this out, we live in freedom. Thank you for being you Mary. Beautifully created & a woman who rises up with her words. Praying boldly with you, Mary.
Thank you for the sweet words, Jolene! You are right when you say that looking in a mirror becomes a courageous thing. It’s one thing to look at the exterior, but when we look deeply we catch the true view, flaws and all. May we all look closely and claim a life of freedom in Christ when we do.
Thank you for sharing such a thoughtfully written and edifying post.
I found myself re-reading your statement, “Sharing our stories on a deeper level has exposed individual reflections in a mirror. It made me ponder my own reflection and how it needs to reflect Christ back to others.
It was such a blessing to visit here today.
Your kind words mean so much to me. I am learning how to look closer at my own reflection because making a difference starts with me. I certainly do not have the answers but I am praying boldly that God continues to lead me past just beginning. We need finishers to show how love can make the difference between acceptance and rejection. Your insight and encouragement have made a difference. I am blessed you were here.
Gorgeous pictures! I too enjoy looking at reflections. These questions have me thinking: “Are there areas in your life that require you to do more than talk about what you are going to do? Is it time to move from purpose to action?” pray boldly……yes!
When looking at reflections we are faced with what part of the picture is reality. The same thing can happen when we look at ourselves in a mirror. We see the outside of ourselves but God sees and knows the inside. He claims we are beautiful and equipped to do His work. Now we need to know that for ourselves. May we all pray boldly to move from purpose into action. Hugs and blessings!
Mary, what a beautiful post. I LOVE reflection pictures, and yours are gorgeous. 🙂
When I look at my own reflection, I’m so quick to see the puffy eyes, the blemished skin, the limp hair. I am challenged by your words to take a deeper look, beyond the surface. Maybe as I learn to see myself through God’s eyes, I can more clearly see others through His eyes too. Looking beyond the surface of skin color, or whatever, and into the beauty God placed within each person.
Your post challenges me, my friend. Thank you for that.
Why are we always so quick in finding the flaws instead of the beauty that God blessed us with? Someone shared a statistic with me that within the first ten seconds of meeting someone, we have have already formed multiple (I don’t remember the number) assumptions. All we have seen is the exterior. Oh, to take the time to look deeper and find the connections that make us beautiful. I am challenged by this as much as anyone else but know that it is not okay to go through life and never look deeper. It starts with us and my obstacle is learning what to do after taking that first step. I pray we all feel called to look beyond the surface and let God lead us into what the next steps should look like. I pray that this challenge is one that we accept. Blessed that you joined me here, Jeanne!
I forgot to say I LOVE your reflection photos. 🙂
Thank you so much! I have been captivated by reflections recently.
“God continues to gently pull the covers away to teach me I am beautiful and loved. He beckons me to look deeper at who I am and His purpose for me…” I identify with this. I love how God is gently leading us. My heart aches for anyone who is prejudiced against. I’m so glad God never looks at the color of skin, etc. A song I love is just popping up into my mind. 🙂
“Jesus loves the little children
All the little children of the world
Red and yellow, black and white
They are precious in his sight
Jesus loves the little children of the world”
May we live our lives like Jesus! Blessings and hugs to you, Mary!
I love that song and haven’t thought of it in a long time. Thank you for the reminder. My heart aches too when we see the hurt that is so prevalent in our world. All I know is I pray that I am part of the solution and not the problem. Praying we all may live our lives like Jesus. Love and hugs to you!
Thank you Mary for your bold words and call! I love that God is calling us all for racial reconcilliation at this time where divisions are raw — how as Christians we are called to rise..this is such a beautiful, inspiring post! We can do little things too..in fact, I saw a casting notice for a theater production on my Facebook (my son is in theater) and it called for Afro American and Asians to play the bully..isn’t this how we perpetuate the many hurtful stereotypes? I will surely be writing the producer of the show and casting director. Thank you and Lisha and Diedra and all standing for God’s truth and love!
God is working on me in this area and it is easy to talk about it, but so much harder to take that next step. I am praying hard to allow God to lead me to what’s next so that my talk becomes action and I learn to love everyone. I do believe that our society perpetuates stereotypes and you would think in 2016 that we would be in a much different place. I pray you find the strength and words to write the producer of the show that is casting actors. If nothing else, hopefully it will make this person stop and think before doing this again. Lisha and Deidra inspire me to step out of my comfort zone. They use their voices to teach us all with a grace and love that is needed to further the conversations. Thank you for blessing me today by joining in the conversation and sharing your insight.