Let Me See

To get this day started off right, let's be honest: we can be pretty judgmental and harsh toward one another. Women in particular find themselves caught up in gossip and just plain ugly talk about one another.  Don't deny it girls.  We are all guilty.

We share some "news" we over heard about someone we know.

We look at a coworker's outfit in disgust and say to someone else, "Can you believe she had the nerve to wear that?"

We talk about the past of someone else to overshadow our own dark times.

We get caught up in discussing someone's choice of boyfriends, amount of cleavage shown, tightness of pants, or loudness to get attention.

And we look at others in a different way:
She has her life together, and she always looks so happy. I envy her so much. I can't even get out of the house without yelling at someone!

Look at these Facebook posts! She has a perfect life.

Her kids are so well behaved, but I am a loser mom because my kids can't stay quite for 5 minutes in church.

She looks so put together every day, never looking tired or overwhelmed.  I can't seem to get rid of these bags under my eyes, and my clothes are so out of style.

Basically we are caught up with what we see on the outside, and we fail to look at the heart of others.

1Samuel 16:7 says, "For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart."

Let me tell you this in the words of my dear friend Sara, "We are all crazy!"

Seriously though. No one is perfect.  The outside  of a person may make us envious, but you don't know what is in their heart.  You don't want the struggles that are covered by the smile and new clothes.

More moms than you realize plaster a fake smile on their faces while walking into church because they have just yelled at their kids in the parking lot.

That Facebook post is meant to portray a particular image because she is striving to fit in with a particular group of people.

The pants of your coworker are too tight because she has an eating disorder she's dealt with since high school.

She is not secure in herself so she must talk about others to get the attention off of her.

She appears to look put together, so the world can't see she's falling apart. She'd be considered a failure if they only knew....

If they only knew what is in her heart.......would they still love her?

Isn't that what we want?  To be really and truly known and still be really and truly loved?
Not judged.
Not ridiculed.
Not gossiped about.
Not left out.

But
Wanted
Desired
Known
Loved
Unconditionally.

We want someone to know our good side and bad side, our sins and struggles, and we want them to still love us and want us.

There is someone who does that.  Jesus Christ.

As a Child of God, I can tell Him:
Lord, I'm falling apart.
Jesus, I feel like the worst mom in the world.
Dear God, I'm tired and worn out and lonely.
Father, I am struggling and can't do this on my own.

As a Child of God, I can rest in the comforting fact that my Lord will cover me with His love, that if I honest to goodness ask Him too, He will reveal what's in my heart and work with me to make it right.

As Christ followers, we need to see like Jesus sees.  We need to look at the heart of others. We need to pray for them instead of gossip about them.  We need to encourage them instead of dog them out.

Dear Brother and Sister in Christ, you are NOT alone.  Like Sara says, we are all crazy in our own way. We have to be there for one another and lift each other up. We have to be transparent so others can see our struggles AND see how Christ works in our lives.

You have along day ahead of you. You will run into many people: coworkers, friends, strangers. Ask God to give you His eyes. Ask Him to help you see how He sees. Then love like crazy. Love people the way you want to be loved. When you do, they will see Christ in you.