Reflections on reflections

Fiction writers sometimes revert to the “mirror trick” in describing a charter’s physical characteristics. They will have that person look into a glass or water mirror, their inner thoughts adding the details that help us “see” him or her.  Like this (go ahead and snicker at my  feeble fiction skills):
As Harold buzzed the stubble off his chin, he leaned into the bathroom mirror wondered why he hadn’t noticed the puffy bags under his eyes before.  He ran a brush through his thinning hair and groaned over how many were gray.  And those hairs hanging out his ears made him think of a dried-out tassel on a withered ear of corn.

The Bible had some thoughts about reflections, too.  Proverbs 27:10 says,

As water reflects a face, so a man’s heart reflects the man.

That verse came to mind recently when my husband and I traveled up the picturesque Methow Valley in central Washington state.  We passed by beautiful Patterson Lake, whose placid early-morning waters mirrored the shoreline trees.  Parts of the lake were a perfect reflection; others had already been stirred, probably by fishermen, blurring and shortening the reflection.

I thought of how when we reflect and love and peace of Jesus, it’s evident in our faces.  We’re approachable.  I have several friends like that—and how I enjoy being with them! But I have other friends who are plagued by anxiety or disappointment. The “peace of Christ that passes all understanding” (Philippians 4:7) seems to have been drained from them. It’s hard to describe, but you just know.

It may seem strange to think that God is in the face-lift business and we lift our faces to Him—but He is. The apostle Paul picked up on that heart-to-face connection when he said those in relationship with Christ “with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory [and] are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory” (2 Corinthians 3:18).

At times my “reflection” properties are in need of improvement, like those stirred lake waters that were no longer mirrors.  Thankfully, God is on the other side of the mirror.  He sees the exterior (like the morning chin stubble on our fiction model “Harold”) but He also sees deep within us to who we can become in Him.

Now, that’s worth reflecting on!

View from the top

It’s not the top of the world, but Sun Mountain above Central Washington’s picturesque Methow Valley is certainly a splendid setting.  As a winding road ascends, signs warn drivers to watch for wandering mule deer. These critters think they have priority on the road (and some, sadly, lose to a car). En route are scenic pullouts fully worthy of... WOW!

Normally, the rates at the Sun Mountain lodge are way beyond our budget.  But for a limited off-season time, they offered drastic reductions as a “community appreciation” for help in last year’s wildfires. Besides, it offered a memorable way to celebrate our 35^th wedding anniversary—in a “jacuzzi bridal suite,” no less!  The location was so peaceful, leaving me in renewed awe of the amazing landscape of this planet that God designed. 

A lot of people in reading through a Bible wonder if anything good can come out of the Old Testament books of Chronicles.  There’s a lot of gory, king-conquering, king-failing history in the books.  But there are also the fingerprints of God’s help and mercy.  Into that context was dropped this observation:

For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. (2 Chronicles 16:9)

 Because it describes God’s character, this verse can stand by itself as well as in the narrative of foolish King Asa’s actions. (This was a king who had bad counselors and turned away from God.)  I know how it lifted me years ago as a single, when I wondered if God was aware of the challenges and troubles I faced.  Of course, God doesn’t have an “eye” as we would think of on humans. But the image provided for me that sense of larger watch-care when I went through things that were bigger and scarier than I’d ever encountered.

 Seeing the panorama of mountain beauty did something else for me.  It reminded me to seek the “high view” toward others who aren’t quite at the point of “hearts...fully committed to him.” I think the writer of Proverbs had that same sense when he wrote:

A man’s wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense. (Proverbs 19:11)
A wise person has selective vision. That person’s eyes may range to and fro, finding those who offend or oppose, but their heart of love forgives.

And that, as 2 Chronicles 16:9 says, is a strong, “love” response. It takes the high road, and looks down with mercy and love on all the daily-ness and struggles of life’s valleys.

Can you see why I loved the view?  And why it reminded me of God’s loving eye on me, wherever in life’s journey He takes me?

The tongue and the tree

Ashy gray sadness pervades in areas scorched by wildfire. This hill, with so many evergreens stripped to black splinters, was part of last year’s “Carlton Complex” fires that took the lives of three fire fighters, left another severely burned, and churned through a quarter of a million acres.  The acreage amounted to three-fourths of all fire loss in my state that summer.

Fire is so ruthless, so devastating, so unpredictable. I thought of James 3:5-6

Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark.  The tongue is also a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body.  It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and it itself set on fire by hell.

Powerful words! But how many of us have experienced the fury of an angry person and the stabbing pain of their negative words?  How many of us have been guilty of doing that? 

One mark of spiritual maturity is the ability to control one’s words.  Paul urged:

Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.  Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. (Ephesians 4:31)

Even deeper, a mark of maturity is reacting to the fire of angry words with the cool spirit of someone controlled by “Living Water.” None of us will escape the fury of someone’s anger. But I am challenged and encouraged by the advice that James gave later in the same chapter.  The best “fire extinguisher” possible is the wisdom of God, seen in a heart that is:

....first of all pure; then peace loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.” (James 3:17)

The firefighter’s mascot, “Smokey the Bear,” famously said, “Only YOU can prevent forest fires.” Maybe we need to amend that to: “Only YOU, with the help of Christ, can fight angry tongue fires with His ‘living water’ of a peaceful, forgiving spirit.”

Fruity duty

A custom of the past still exists at my local county fair, with Grange-sponsored fruit and vegetable displays in the floral and horticulture barn.  I’m not sure of the judging criteria, but each display must illustrate some sort of theme. This year, it was “carnival.”  As I compared the various displays, I thought of how the blessing of food wasn’t taken for granted in ancient times. Our mega-size farms with dinosaur-size planting and harvesting machines were unheard of and undreamed in Bible times.

Farming also took on spiritual meaning with the prophet Hosea.  He’s best known for marrying, at God’s command, an unfaithful woman and using that sorrowful experience to illustrate Israel’s spiritual promiscuity and God’s longing for restoration. His three children’s names were part of the prophecy.

Jezreel, the first-born son, meant “scattered,” for the Israelites would be dispersed from the land.
Lo-Ruhamah, the daughter’s name, meant “Not loved.”
Lo-Ammi, the second daughter, meant “Not my people.”

Hosea’s prophecy condemns relying on anyone or anything other than God for the guiding and sustaining of life. Near the end, he uses some farm imagery that still speaks clearly:

Sow for yourselves righteousness, reap the fruit of unfailing love, and break up your unplowed ground; for it is time to seek the Lord, until he comes and showers righteousness on you. (Hosea 10:12)

At some point in my life, I wrote three references in the margin opposite this verse:

*2 Corinthians 7:10: “Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.”
*2 Corinthians 9:6: “Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly well also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.”
*Galatians 6:7-9: “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked.  A man reaps what he sows.” The verses go on to connect the sinful nature reaping destruction, and pleasing God’s spirit as reaping eternal life.

In ancient cultures, farming was a constant battle of digging out rocks, pulling weeds, and protecting a crop from predators.  Such farming was also a perfect metaphor for living a life pleasing to God.  The spiritual “crop” of a God-centered life doesn’t happen if the inner life is neglected.  From time to time, hardship and hard-to-love people combine to help us break up that “unplowed ground” that isn’t being fruitful for God. 

It may sound strange to say this, but sometimes we need to sit still before God, repent of our weak spiritual areas, and say, “Turn over my soil, Lord.  It’s hard-packed and resistant from persistent sin. Break it up and press your seeds of truth into it.  Help me grow spiritually. Remind me that I’m on display for You.”