Things Aren't Always As They Seem

Earlier this month I attended the funeral of my husband's cousin. She was a precious lady, close to twenty years our senior, but always so busy, bubbly, and vivacious. I learned things about her during her service that I had never known. Among them was her steadfast service through her church to those individuals often cast aside, shunned, or forgotten by society.

You see, Roseanne ministered to the homeless and to AIDS patients. I can totally imagine her soft, measured speech bringing soothing words of love and hope to those who desperately needed to hear it. One of her daughters shared a method she liked to use when training new recruits for this ministry.

Roseanne would walk into the room dressed all in black with just a hint of blue at the neckline. She would then proceed to ask the volunteer to describe what she was wearing. It seemed obvious that it was a black suit with a bright blue scarf, and was, more often than not, described that way. She answered with nothing but a, "Hmmm...," and began to unbutton the black jacket, revealing the scarf attached to a cerulean blue blouse. It wasn't a scarf at all.

She asked a second time for the volunteer to describe what she was wearing. Now it was plain that she had on a blue blouse and black skirt, but when they answered that way, once again came a, "Hmmm...," and she began to unzip the skirt. (Crazy right?!) Once all the black was removed it revealed a beautiful blue dress underneath.

It wasn't a scarf. It wasn't a blouse. Things aren't always as they seem.

I thought it was a brilliant object lesson. In her own way, Roseanne was trying to make the point that we mustn't be too quick in making judgment calls. Our first impression isn't always the correct one. Everything and everyone has a back story. Each individual, a beloved child of God.

Yep, looks can be deceiving.

Haven't we seen this played out enough on the internet? Instagram is notorious for it. We get sucked into the beauty of those perfect squares, comparing ourselves, our families, and our homes to what we see displayed on the screen. We often come up lacking, and it breeds dissatisfaction and discontent. We hold ourselves up to those striking images and groan. If only we lived in a British country house, or dressed in flowing skirts while gardening, or had children frolicking on the lawn with rabbits and deer!! Ok. That last statement was a bit much, but you get the drift, and you've probably run across some accounts like that yourself if you've spent any time at all scrolling the net.

The truth is... nobody wants to see dishes piled up in the sink - unless, of course, artfully done so - or shots of dirty laundry spilling out of the hamper and onto the floor. Besides, cameras and editing software can do wonders in tricking the eye, and sometimes we fall for it.

We often have to look long... and deep to discover the real truth beneath the facade of a thing, or of a person, or of a situation. Sometimes we're surprised by what we find. Sometimes we're humbled. Sometimes it shakes us to our core. I think there's a lesson here we can all take to heart. I'm sure Roseanne's object lesson will stay with me every time I'm tempted to make a quick call on something... or someone. Looks can be deceiving.

In writing these thoughts, I can't help but dwell a bit on the look of things the day Jesus was crucified. There He hung, the Messiah, the Son of God, between two criminals, bloody, beaten, spit upon. His scalp riddled with thorns, His back splayed open from the barbed whip, flesh tearing under the weight and stress of the spikes driven into His hands and feet.

To the casual observer the scene appeared hopeless. His ministry, His message, played out along with His failing body. Most of his followers had scattered. Only a few ramained til the very end, when it was over. Done. Finished. His broken body was taken down and laid in a borrowed tomb

... and Satan began dancing on His grave.

But we musn't stop at Part 1. We must stay with it longer, linger, dig deeper. If we stop at Part 1 we will never get the reward of knowing, understanding, believing what lies beyond the surface of what we see.

You and I know the rest of the story, don't we?! I pray we all do.

Looks can be deceiving... because Sunday was coming! And, thanks be to God, things aren't always as they seem.

It's a good thing to keep in mind, and I think God would be pleased if we do.