If you hadn't noticed yet I may as well tell you that this year my posts are going to focus on identity statements. “Why?” you ask. Because in order to live the YES life I need to say yes to who God says I am, not just what He wants me to do. Sometimes, it's easier to say yes to doing something than it is to say yes to becoming something. 

God's ultimate desire for you and me is that we would be reflections of His glory, His character, who He is. 

The summer of 2017 was all abuzz with talk of the solar eclipse. In some locations the sun would be totally covered by the moon. People were taking long trips to be in locations that would experience a few minutes of total darkness. They were purchasing special eclipse-viewing glasses or trying to make some themselves. The news was full of announcements and tips on the best places and ways to experience the eclipse. 

My area wasn't going to get the full darkness immersion so I was watching on TV to get an idea of what people were experiencing. But one TV commentator said something that made me run to the window. He said that because of the moon in front of the sun the shape of the sun shining through a window onto the floor or through the leaves onto the ground would be in the shape of a crescent. I quickly searched my house to find  sun coming through the windows. I wondered what I would find. Was it true? Did the moon affect the sun enough to change the shape of light even if I wasn’t experiencing the full darkness? Then I realized that I wasn’t missing the eclipse at all. I found crescent-shaped sun spots on my floor! When I looked out the back window I found crescent-shaped sun spots under the tree! No, I hadn't missed the eclipse. I just experienced it differently. 

How does this all fit with knowing who you are? The same sun that was hidden by the moon leaving others in darkness was making crescent shapes in my back yard because of the moon's path in front of it. Those crescents were just as much a piece of the eclipse as the minutes of darkness experienced in other locations. It wasn’t as spectacular, but just as genuine. 

You and I are called to show characteristics of what God is like. Some of us may catch more attention. We may be out in front and more people may get a glimpse of Him through us. Some of us may quietly reflect Him in ways that others may miss. 

It doesn’t matter how many people notice your reflection of Him. What matters is that you are reflecting Him. I never would have noticed those crescent shapes if I hadn’t heard about them, but they still would have been there. As you allow Him to shape your life, others will see Him through you, whether they realize it or not. They will experience Him through the love you show and through the ways you allow Him to work through your uniqueness.

And then one day, they may hear someone say that when a person is following Christ they will reflect His character. At that moment, they may look at you and realize that they had been seeing Him in you all along. They hadn’t missed His love. They had just experienced it differently than they expected. Through you. 

Key thought: Give people a glimpse of His love.

A Scripture to consider: “Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people.” Philippians‬ ‭2:15‬ ‭NLT‬‬

A YES challenge: Think of someone whose Christian walk you admire. How are you experiencing God’s love through them? How are others experiencing God’s love through you?

Prayer: 

Father, I never thought of myself as a reflection of Your love. I’m not spectacular. But You want me to shine with Your love. Help me to reflect You well in my sphere of influence, no matter how small it is. Amen.