Have you ever looked at yourself in the mirror and thanked God for the way he made you? Have you ever looked in the mirror of your soul and appreciated what a magnificent creation you are, despite your imperfections, body and soul?
After preparing myself to go to work one day, I stopped on my way out the door and looked at myself in a mirror. It was my usual last-minute check to make sure I looked ready and willing to have a great day.
Instead of nodding in approval and moving on, I stared at my image in the mirror for a minute or two. I looked good, but I started thinking about how imperfect I am. I started thinking about all my shortcomings and all the less-than-perfect things I had done in my life.
Was I Doubting a God Who Makes No Mistakes?
Then another thought occurred to me. Was I questioning I was the handiwork of a perfect God, the great potter who formed me according to his perfect design? Was I doubting a God who makes no mistakes?
I’m certainly no masterpiece in the world’s eyes, but as a creation of God, was I questioning the ability of the artist who created the heavens and the earth with all it marvelous wonders? Was I forgetting we are all the handiwork of God, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:10)?
Three Parts to Understanding Our Perfection in God's Eyes
There are three parts to this passage.
First, we are creations of an almighty God. We are supernatural achievements of which God is proud. Remember how God looked at his creation in Genesis and said it was good? God does not make mistakes. No matter what we think, we are not mistakes in God’s eyes.
Second, if we allow him, God creates us in Jesus. Through our relationship with Jesus Christ, he equips us for doing good works. How does he do this? He has made available to us the gifts of the Holy Spirit. These gifts produce fruit, the fruit of the Spirit. The gifts and the fruit they bear in our lives are not the result of our efforts or requirements to enter heaven. They’re products of God’s handiwork. As Christians we are created again through Christ, this time to do good works.
Third, to enable us to do good works, he planned every aspect of our lives in advance. We don’t serve the God who created us in a vacuum. He has equipped each of us with numerous natural abilities, and surrounds us with the people and events that enable us to serve his people, advance his kingdom here on earth, and prepare ourselves and others for eternity with him.
Finally, consider this. The next time you look in a mirror, pause for a minute or two and reflect on your reflection. Look beyond what you see. Gaze into your soul and say, “I am ready and willing to have a great day, because I’m a perfect creation of a perfect God.”
Additional reading:
Listening to God's Words
So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. (Genesis 1:17)
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. Psalm (139:13-14)
You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. (John 15:16)
Also read: Isaiah 64:8, 1 Corinthians 3:16, Ephesians 4:24
In the Words of Others
“Within each of us exists the image of God, however disfigured and corrupted by sin it may presently be.” Alister McGrath
“The human being is an animal who has received the vocation to become God.” Saint Basil
“In God is my being, my me, my strength, my beatitude, my good, and my delight.” Catherine of Genoa
Think About It
Have you ever considered the significance of being a creation of a perfect God? If you have, did you try to reconcile that fact with how imperfect you are?
If you have an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ, have you taken seriously the gifts and resources available to you to do good works by serving others? Is yes, great. If no, reflect on why.
Promise yourself you will take time to look at your reflection in a mirror, and reflect on how you were created in the image of God, to be recreated in the image of Christ.