Sometimes we try to appear more spiritual than we are. Were you to ask me “What’s the last thing you do before you come out to preach?”, you might expect me to say “Pray”. But the truth is, the last thing I usually do is look in the mirror and check my buttons and zipper. I’m sorry if that disappoints you, but it is the truth. If I haven’t prayed before then I doubt that a little “wish me well” prayer as I’m walking out the door will do any good. By the way. looking in the mirror isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Sometimes it does us good to look at ourselves. As Yogi Berra said, “You can see a lot by looking“.
Most people try to put themselves in the best possible light. We base our conclusion on what we want to think rather than what we actually are. But even if we fool others we haven’t helped ourselves. The first step in changing is seeing the need of change. To do that we must examine ourselves in the mirror of God’s Word–that’s the only mirror that can change our appearance! What we see might be discouraging and even fill us with despair, but that’s not all bad–we need to see the truth and the Bible doesn’t lie. Let’s face it, there are times when we don’t want to face it. We don’t want to look in the mirror because we know we won’t like what we see. That’s why some folks shy away from the Bible. It doesn’t fit their life-style.
Now I know there is a morbid introspection that isn’t healthy, but that doesn’t mean we should never examine ourselves. The mirror of God’s Word is absolutely essential to our spiritual well-being. Our spiritual growth depends on it (2 Cor. 3:18; Jam. 1:22-25). But, if we look into God’s Word without taking action we deceive ourselves (Ja. 1:22). However, if we obey what we observe it will transform us into the likeness of Christ. Sp, rather than spending time looking at others, we ought to be looking at ourselves, with the intent of correcting what’s wrong. Look at you–what do you see? —HDS
