Reflecting Christ
Yesterday was a stunningly beautiful day. Sunny, low 70s, few clouds, autumn colors. Doesn't get much better than that. So, I went out with the kids on a hike around my favorite nature center and marveled in the beauty. This is the same hike as the one I wrote yesterday of the boys climbing the stairs of Cirith Ungol. Prior to the climb up those stairs, we spent some time at one of the ponds there as the boys fed the turtles and I got some shots of the beautiful colors around us. One of the things I am always looking for as a photographer in settings like this is the perfect reflection. Its pretty rare to find, but when you do its such a stunning picture. The water yesterday was fairly still, but not quite perfect - there were some ripples in the water, some bubbles from the fish coming to the surface, and so forth. But it was oh so close.
As I was having my prayer time this morning, I was thinking about the beauty of the day yesterday and this picture in particular. Got thinking about the ways that I am called to reflect Christ to others. I want to be one that reflects a perfect image of Christ (after all, we are all created in the image of God), but I know that I fall short. There is always something that's not quite perfect. There are times that I feel I come closer than others to that reflection just as there are times that I have gotten one of these shots that seems just about perfect. But of course there are other times when a strong breeze is blowing and the skies are grey and so forth. Yet the amazing, wondrous, beautiful news is that somehow God still works through our imperfect reflections to help others see the reality and the love of God.