Recently my husband and I spent an afternoon with seemingly perfect people. No joke. Never have I thought Barbie and Ken to be real, until now.
In terms of how culture defines the word success, these people have it all – the show home house, the perfectly behaved kids, the stylin’ vehicles, the gorgeous assemble of outfits, charm, personality, talent and good looks. It would have been easy to go home and be depressed for the rest of my life, except earlier that morning I had read, “…people judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart…” and it etch-a-sketched it’s way into my mind in such a way, that while talking to “Miss Perfection,” my mouth blurted out a question as if it were momentarily independent from my body.
Catching her off guard (and instantly wishing my mouth came with a lock and key), she quietly said, “Wow, no one has ever asked me that before. Thank you for caring. *Insert short pause that felt like eternity.* The thing I love more than anything else in this whole world is helping people. I would honestly do anything for anyone and I hate that I’m never given the chance to actually explain that. I’m always a concluded assumption that’s never given the opportunity to introduce herself.”
During our goodbye’s she hugged me and said, “Thanks for meeting the real me today. I can’t remember the last time I’ve let my guard down like that.”
Later that evening, as I lay awake in bed, I couldn’t help but replay the chain of events over in my head while thinking about 1 Samuel 16:7. That passage of scripture is referring to Samuel as he’s about to anoint David as king, but that scripture applies to so many people from all walks of life: young, old, rich, poor, man, woman, black, white, thin, overweight, “pretty”, “ugly” (who decides this anyway).
It got me thinking how I would have never blurted out a question like that to a complete stranger if not for scripture coming alive in my heart in that very moment. God knew that girl needed it. She needed to be seen. She needed to be heard. She needed to know about God’s love in that very moment and know she matters to Him.
We need to approach life from the perspective of Christ and not the perspective of culture.
And that’s what The Word of God does.
When you read scripture, your heart absorbs it.
When your heart absorbs it, it starts to take root.
When it starts to take root, it begins to grow.
When it begins to grow, it takes over your mind.
When it takes over your mind, it controls your thoughts.
When it controls your thoughts, your perspective shifts.
Warning!!!!! … when your perspective shifts, you begin to see the world the way Jesus sees it. And when you see the world the way Jesus sees it, well, then, oh boy, watch out, your life – a.k.a. your comfortable afternoon pool parties – will never the same.
The real question is: are you ready for that?
”For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.” Hebrews 4:12
