{"id":1531,"date":"2021-08-12T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-08-12T01:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/as-it-is-in-heaven.com\/?p=1531"},"modified":"2021-08-12T00:35:33","modified_gmt":"2021-08-11T15:35:33","slug":"have-you-looked-in-the-mirror-lately","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/as-it-is-in-heaven.com\/have-you-looked-in-the-mirror-lately\/","title":{"rendered":"Have You Looked in the Mirror Lately?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It\u2019s morning and you go to the bathroom to check yourself in the mirror. Time to see what I look like…<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maybe you\u2019re excited to see your appearance at the start of the day. Maybe you\u2019re expecting the worst. Once we see something in the mirror that we don\u2019t like about our appearance, we usually attempt to fix it before going out. But did you know that your spirit has a mirror too?\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Our Spiritual Mirror<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The Bible is our standard for living out our lives as Christians – it’s like a mirror, as said in James 1.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.<\/strong>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

James 1:22-24<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Have you looked in this spiritual mirror lately? What do you see? Is your spirit something you\u2019re proud of<\/a> or does it make\u00a0you want to look the other way? Is it glowing with righteous deeds and words, or is it stained with negativity or dark spots?\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As believers, our lives should reflect the Bible – our thoughts, words, actions, even our knowledge of the Bible should live up to God\u2019s standard<\/a>. You may find yourself thinking, well how do I actually<\/em> use the Bible to see my own spirit clearly then?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Importance of Putting What We Learn into Action<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

When it comes to the Bible, it\u2019s no surprise that we have to actually read and understand it in order for us to know how to apply it to our lives. But how often has it happened that you read something and forget it soon after? Why does this happen?\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because we didn\u2019t make an effort to put it into practice from the get-go. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back to James 1. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is God telling us here? If we just listen to or read the word but don\u2019t put it into practice, then we are like someone who, for a moment, was able to see the appearance of their spirit clearly in the Bible, but then walked away and forgot what it looked like.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do You Ignore Your Mirrors?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Can you imagine if we looked in mirrors for our physical appearance, found some things to fix, but then just walked away and did nothing?\u00a0 Or maybe we deceive<\/em> ourselves into thinking there were no problems from the start.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is why we have to nurture<\/em> what we receive. In Matthew 13, Jesus describes different states our heart can be in when we receive the word of God. In the rocky field, a person receives the word with great joy. However, they have no root, so when hard times come, their spirit withers and dies (Matthew 13:20).<\/strong> To help the word take root, we must review it and make a conscious effort to put that word into practice. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How Can I Make Sure I’m Using My Mirror Properly?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Knowing and Understanding<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

First by knowing <\/em>it, of course! But for some of us, even that is a big hurdle. The Bible is a big book <\/a>and there are many things that are hard to understand. But with small steps every day, all of us can get there. And we can help you with that<\/a>. You aren\u2019t in this alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meditating and Reflecting<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Second, by making a habit to meditate<\/em> on the word deeply. Reflecting <\/em>on what God is telling you and learning to apply it to yourself and your life. Take the time to read the word slowly, thinking about what you can learn about God\u2019s heart and will from the passage. Think about God\u2019s intention behind those verses and try to think about things from His perspective<\/a> as a loving Father.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Make an effort to see yourself<\/em> in it–the good and the bad. Knowing where you are in the Bible is the first step to knowing what you should do moving forward. But if we skim over the Word quickly without digesting, or digest it only to use it to judge everyone other than ourselves, then we become the reality of someone who forgets what they look like in the mirror.\u00a0Or we become that person who uses a mirror to sneakily watch others from behind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Putting it Into Action<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Lastly, after determining what connection the word has to our lives, we have to actually live it out<\/em>. The Bible is full of God\u2019s commands on how to live a holy life. You may be familiar with Matthew 5-7, or Jesus\u2019 \u2018Sermon on the Mount,\u2019 Paul\u2019s letters to the early churches – covering most of the New Testament books from Romans to Jude.\u00a0 These books are all written to Christians so that we can learn how to and live up to God\u2019s standard, represent Him well, and ultimately have a genuine relationship with Him. These words are the mirror we can see ourselves in.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it–he will be blessed in what he does. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

James 1:25<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s Time to Use that Mirror <\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Nobody is saying this is easy, but we have <\/em>to do it. If we never look in this mirror, or never apply what we see in it, then we\u2019ll always be walking around spiritually un-presentable. And none of us want to look that way in front others, but most importantly, in front of God.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It takes effort. Just like most people can\u2019t just \u201cwake up this way,\u201d a good spiritual appearance and life is the result of time and effort. And once we start making this effort the right way, our reflection in the mirror should show someone made in the image of God. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God,  and the Word was God.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

John 1:1<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Children should look like their parents, right? So if God is the Word, then shouldn\u2019t we also look like the Word to have the same image as our Heavenly Father? He has given us all the tools and instructions on how to make our appearance look like His, so now’s the time to get started.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Written by Samantha<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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6 Practical Tips to Improve Your Life of Faith<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

How Can I Live a Righteous Life?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What’s God’s Favorite Crop? How to Be a Wheat-Like Believer<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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