By: Jer
In my last post, I brought up the question: “God, how are You revealing Yourself through those around me?” I had a chance to reflect on my day with this question, but it felt a bit too general. Something happened. I started to make the question personal. I asked: “God, how are You revealing Yourself through a specific student?” Of course, as God normally does, the student that came up first was the one that drives me the most crazy. He’s the one I am often at a loss for and can be so incredibly frustrating. My gut reaction was to just stop the reflection right there. I don’t really want to believe and see this student with something to offer me of God. In fact, I’m there to help solve his problems, that’s my job. I don’t want to go any deeper than that, especially with someone who can be so frustrating.
For me, it’s easy to believe the people I like can show me something of God, that they can bear God’s image. It’s easy to see it and appreciate it. It’s also easy for the people that frustrate me to believe that God is present and is “working” on them. Normally, that’s where I leave it. When I think of Brian’s sermon this past week and how we encounter Jesus in the poor, the broken, the marginalized. It’s easy to see God being on their side, that He is working on their behalf. But, to actually believe they can show me something of God, that’s different. To even take it a step further and believe that someone who frustrates me can offer me something, that’s hard to believe.
It’s hard to believe because I like to pretend and act as though I am better than those around me. It reveals both an insecurity of who I am and how judgmental I can be to those around me. It’s hard to give that up. But in order for me to truly see and encounter God in those around me, I have to surrender. I need to keep paying attention to the image of God in each person around me, no matter how hard it might be.
My invitation for you is to do the same and fill in the blank: “God, how are You revealing Yourself through ___________?”