On June 17-18, the world's eight most powerful leaders met for the G8 summit in the village of Enniskillen, Ireland. As might be expected, the town went to great lengths to "spruce up" appearances. But in this case, they took extraordinary measures, which included fake storefronts, giving the appearance of a thriving business climate.
In reality, the entire area has suffered a terrible economic recession, causing many businesses to close their doors for over a year. Rather than showcasing this reality, the image-conscious village leaders opted for pretension, even going as far as placing large pictures in the windows, giving the appearance of booming business.
Before we shake our heads, let's face it-- we're all guilty of this. How often do we put on appearances for others, pretending to be something we're not? How often do we paste on a smile, stating that "everything's fine", when we're dying inside? How often do we act more "spiritual" around certain people, or more positive, or more...? God's word says a lot about being the same on the inside as the outside.
1 Samuel 16:7 informs us, "People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." That's the "real" us that God sees. Jesus warns,"Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them." He went as far as calling the Pharisees "whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean." (Matt 23:27)
What God really wants from us is to be real; to live in reality; not the reality of who we think we are, but the reality of who HE says we are. Not everyone will like it, but God's opinion is the only one that counts. He looks right past the fake "storefronts" we put up and sees straight into our hearts.
In reality, the entire area has suffered a terrible economic recession, causing many businesses to close their doors for over a year. Rather than showcasing this reality, the image-conscious village leaders opted for pretension, even going as far as placing large pictures in the windows, giving the appearance of booming business.
Before we shake our heads, let's face it-- we're all guilty of this. How often do we put on appearances for others, pretending to be something we're not? How often do we paste on a smile, stating that "everything's fine", when we're dying inside? How often do we act more "spiritual" around certain people, or more positive, or more...? God's word says a lot about being the same on the inside as the outside.
1 Samuel 16:7 informs us, "People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." That's the "real" us that God sees. Jesus warns,"Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them." He went as far as calling the Pharisees "whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean." (Matt 23:27)
What God really wants from us is to be real; to live in reality; not the reality of who we think we are, but the reality of who HE says we are. Not everyone will like it, but God's opinion is the only one that counts. He looks right past the fake "storefronts" we put up and sees straight into our hearts.
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