Conceal or Reveal?

The older I get, the more things I see happening with my body that are getting out of control! For instance, I have had dark circles under my eyes for years, but the older I get, those circles are not just under my eyes, they are all around my eyes! So I use concealer every day, and this little tube of cream does its job brightening the area around my eyes, but it is temporary. Sigh.

And, the older I get, the list of changes in my body gets longer, my health changes, and the list of things I would like to just rub concealer on gets longer! Can you relate? If you are around my age, in your 50s, you probably can, and if you are younger, you may want to skip this paragraph, but I hope not the whole message. :) Somewhere in my 40s and 50s, I began the need to conceal. I tried to conceal extra pounds, poor eyesight, gray hair...you get the idea. And the shelves on the stores are full of concealers of many kinds, just ready for me to pluck them off the shelves and rush them to the nearest checkout!

Now, I am not saying that buying these things is wrong. I really don't think it matters and I am sure I will continue to buy some of these products. But all of this is of my inward person. It is the temporary, and today I am being reminded by God's Word that He is NOT looking upon these things. In fact, the only inward thing He cares about is written in His Word in 1 Samuel 15:7 "...The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart."

I love that! It gives me comfort to know that God loves me for my heart for Him, and I do not have to look a certain way to measure up to His expectations!

In Isaiah 40:5, God's Word says, "And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it." This revealing is seen in the first coming of Jesus Christ and His sacrifice for our sins, and it will be again revealed in His second coming. Whew! get a hold of that! God's glory revealed; could there be anything else so amazing, so powerful?!

And just as amazing is that God reveals Himself to us. His Word says in Amos 4:7 "He who forms the mountains, creates the wind, and reveals His thoughts to man, He who turns dawn to darkness, and treads the high places of the earth - the Lord God Almighty is His name."

But wait. Knowing how much He loves me and He reveals Himself to me through His Word, I want to know more about Him and to share Him with others. I want to honor Him and bring him glory. I want to change my attitude from concealing to revealing, taking the focus off of me and turning it to Jesus. I have a long way to go in this, but He is faithful and He will do the work through me if I ask Him to.

As I look out my window this morning, I see that it is cloudy outside, but experience reminds me that, too, is temporary. The sun will come out; in fact, it did indeed rise in the east this morning. I know this for a fact because it is lighter outside, The sun is shining behind those clouds and it will break through when the clouds part. It will be revealed, just as the Son is revealed. And because His Spirit lives in my heart, He is revealed through me and He is revealed through all of you who call Him Lord.

Mercy Me recorded a song a while back that comes to mind. Here are the words and a video that express God's revealing to us so well. Enjoy...

Here With Me

I long for your embrace
Every single day
To meet you in this place
And see you face to face

Will you show me?
Reveal yourself to me
Because of your mercy
I fall down on my knees

And I can feel your presence here with me
Suddenly I'm lost within your beauty
Caught up in the wonder of your touch
Here in this moment I surrender to your love

You're everywhere I go
I am not alone
You call me as your own
To know you and be known

You are holy
And I fall down on my knees

I can feel your presence here with me
Suddenly I'm lost within your beauty
Caught up in the wonder of your touch
Here in this moment I surrender to your love

I surrender to your grace
I surrender to the one who took my place

I can feel your presence here with me
Suddenly I'm lost within your beauty
Caught up in the wonder of your touch
Here in this moment I surrender:

I can feel your presence here with me
Suddenly I'm lost within your beauty
Caught up in the wonder of your touch
Here in this moment I surrender to your love