loving yourself...

i spoke on this topic last evening @ veritas...(by the way...if you know anyone looking for a super informal, laid back, conversational church experience w/ AMAZING music, send them our way! info @ http://veritas-dsm.blogspot.com/) the idea being that living a truth-full life includes believing the Bible when it tells us that we are set free by God's love for us, allowing that to sink in, changing our perspective on things, and then becoming the source of our ability to extend the love and grace of Jesus to the people around us...used mirrors as a prop in this regard. how many of us have a love/hate thing w/ the mirror? it's great to know that you've dressed in a matching way (for most of us), that you don't have crud on your face or stains on your shirt, that your hair neat or messy depending on the day and desire...but it's also the most honest thing we encounter on many days -- the mirror doesn't lie to us about how we look. and more often, it becomes a looking glass to us with regard to how we see ourselves. when i look in the mirror, i don't just see how i look, but i see within myself. we see the flaws, the bumps, the bruises, the scars, the warts that life and choice leave behind. and that can be tough on many of us; it leads to a place where our self worth is challenged and opinion is lowered of our personal worth and value.

get this -- during the service, we had mirrors around the pews to be used during our prayer...my kids grabbed hold of a few of them. kari tells me that they gazed at themselves, smiling, primping, posing, and just being silly. i find my oldest in the mirror sometimes, just smiling at herself. when they look in the mirror, they like what they see. they are entertained. they are happy. i'm not sure they fully grasp this, but they look at themselves like we all ought to -- when we look in the mirror, the person looking back is someone who has been loved, forgiven, redeemed, and SET FREE from all the stuff we've done and hang onto needlessly...

when you look in the mirror today, look past the yuck and see someone who has been loved in a reckless, relentless, amazing way...

john 3:16-17