Spiritual Mirrors

Being a follower of Jesus requires us to be obedient and submissive to his commands. And although we often fail to do so God does not leave us on our own nor does He expect us to do so with our own power. God gives us His Holy Spirit to enable us to follow His Son. His Word says in Acts 1:8 that “we will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on us.” In Romans 8:26 it says that “the Spirit helps us in our weakness.” And in Galatians 5:16 it says that “So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.” Those are great promises!

But God also gives us His Holy Word to help us avoid Satan and our corrupt world, which constantly seeks to destroy us by drawing us away from God and His Holy Spirit. I like to think of the Bible as a “spiritual mirror.”  In our world there are 3 types of mirrors. I would like to compare each of them with God’s spiritual mirror.

The first type of mirror is the mirror on the wall. Most often they are located in bedrooms and bathrooms so we can see what we look like before we head out into the world each day. We check to make sure our face and hair look okay, our clothes look clean and neat, and there is nothing stuck in our teeth. But how do we see ourselves in that mirror spiritually? Do we see a messed up human being or a forgiven sinner? Do we see a successful self-made adult or a child of God? Do we only see ourselves or do we also see a reflection of Jesus?

God gives us the spiritual mirror of His Word, the Bible, so we can truly see who we are and how He sees us! He reminds us that He created us in His image (Genesis 1:27), He redeemed us through His Son Jesus (John 3:16), and He made us heirs with Christ of his eternal Kingdom (Romans 8:17). He also assures us that He loves us (1 John 4:19), we are forgiven (1 John 1:9), and we are made new by the blood of Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:17)!

The second type of mirror is installed on every vehicle in the world. It’s called a rear-view mirror. These mirrors help us to see what is behind us. That could indicate where we’ve been, who may be following us, or what could be creeping up on us. When driving that helps us to know if we are headed in the wrong direction, if we’ve done something wrong (broken the traffic law), or if there is danger on its way (a speeding or emergency vehicle).  Knowing these things helps us to stay on the right road, avoid accidents, and arrive safely at our destination.

God’s Word also provides us with a spiritual rear-view mirror so that we can see where we came from to make sure we are headed in the right direction (1 Corinthians 6:9-11).  It also helps us stay on the right path to our final destination (Matthew 7:13-14). Additionally, it shows us where we have broken His law (Romans 3:20) and tells us the consequences of doing so (Romans 6:23). Finally, His Word also warns us of the dangers that are coming after us (1 Peter 5:8).

The third type of mirror is a corner security mirror.  It is typically found on outdoor buildings or street corners and provides a view around a corner that we can’t see. These mirrors also often magnify that view so we can see the danger more clearly. These mirrors are placed on blind corners, dangerous curves, between close buildings and where children may be present to provide for greater safety and security. They help us avoid serious accidents by enabling us to see oncoming vehicles, people, and other potential dangers that otherwise our eyes would not see.

Once again, God’s Word, like a corner security mirror, enables us to see the spiritual dangers we sometimes fail to see. It warns us of behaviors that are dangerous and will cause us harm (Galatians 5:19-21). It warns us of the hidden traps being set for us (1 Timothy 6:9) and how we should be on our guard at all times (Acts 20:29-31). God’s Word also brings light that exposes the darkness and thus magnifies the dangers that are all around us so we can see them more clearly (1 Corinthians 4:5).

Is God’s Word your spiritual mirror? I pray we would all use it as one to see ourselves as He sees us, keep us on His path, and protect us from danger, harm, and hidden traps!!

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR BARRY VOSS

FaithLife Ministries was founded by Barry Voss & Kim Star-Voss in 2001 as a ministry to train and equip Christian leaders in the mission field. In 1996, Barry first heard the call to go to the mission field. On that mission trip to Kazakhstan, he sensed God’s call on his life to serve Him in a mission field ministry. He continued to respond to that call by going on several more mission trips to teach and minister in 1997. In 1998 he felt God’s call to organize and lead mission trips, and so he recruited and led teams to Peru in 1999 & 2000 through Missions International, a Nashville based mission agency. In 2001, God led Barry and Kim to decide to incorporate in order to lead mission teams on their own, and so FaithLife Ministries was born. They led their first mission trip to the Philippines in May of that year. On that trip Barry taught a workshop on Church Administration.  Our Philippines host invited Barry to come back the following year and teach on that topic for an entire week at their Bible School.  As a result, Barry developed the Management For Church Leaders™ training course.  Since then this ministry has continued to grow as God has led us to more mission field contacts and opened up more opportunities for us to train and equip the leaders of His church.

In 2005, Barry was called to work full-time in this ministry. His focus is on church leadership and management training.  Kim has developed a series of Children’s Ministry Books that are available through this website and joins Barry to teach on leadership and management occasionally. The Lord has continued to affirm our teaching and has led us to seek more opportunities and foreign trainers.