I see pink roses in the mirror. Are we seeing the same thing? Green stems? Yes? What does this tell you? That the mirror is reflecting bunch of pink roses that are in its vicinity or better still; are held over the mirror. So we agree that the mirror cannot create what it wants. It cannot decide “Oh I want to show the face of a woman” or “Today I will show the sky,” No. The mirror does not have the power to choose its reflection. It can only flash back the exact image of what is infront of it. Whether you like it or not, if you put pink roses infront of a mirror that’s exactly what you’ll see. You can cry or be angry but it’s the pink roses you’ll still see. It means the mirror reflects the truth not the wishes of your heart. If you wear a black dress, it’s the black dress you’ll see in the mirror not the yellow one you saw at the store and wished to have . The person who comes out in your day to day is a mirror of the person inside of you. If you speak bitter angry words, the inner you is exactly like that.
You don’t “wish” to be a good person, you must become a good person. We live in a world of lies. We want to have friends who lie to us so that we don’t confront the problem. Imagine if I came here and told you , “Those roses are blue” you’d think “She’s crazy!” Why? Because you can see and you know the truth. We live in bubbles of lies, either the ones created by our fear to face the person in the mirror or the ones created by the experiences we’ve had in life. You can run from the mirror but you cannot run from the person. I don’t carry our bathroom mirror everywhere , I leave it at home but what it reflects when I leave the house is what people will see. Running from the reflection doesn’t change the reflection. Running from your trauma won’t change it. Running from facing the weak, tired, broken, inner man will not change him.
I have some black spots on my face sometimes I don’t want to go out with them showing, so I put make up. There’s something called a concealer. What it does is that it hides dark circles, age spots, blemishes and more by hiding pigments and blending these imperfections into the skin. As powerful and effective as that is, you will have to wash your face. And there is that face again Vanessa, the attempt to disguise imperfections , the discolouration and dark circles worked BUT for a few hours. There we go again, time for confrontation.
Mirrors can evoke strong feelings in us – and they can also be incredibly powerful tools for changing our perspective and seeing parts of ourselves that are usually hidden as we look out into the world. Our desire to be seen and reflected is basic and innate and so is our desire to be fake when what we want to see is not necessarily the reality. Self reflection is the key to breaking free from the inner critic and the external world that strokes our fears and anxieties that we are never safe, never good enough, and never have enough. Some of your thoughts about other people are actually your thoughts about yourself.
It’s of uttermost importance to occasionally, look into your own eyes for just a moment and ask – who am I? How am I really feeling? Am I a pink rose or do I run from the truth by creating lies that fuel my confidence? Am l constantly lying to myself because I’m afraid to face the real me? Am I healed? Am I hurting myself and others? Am l kind? Am I proud? Am l too self conscious that I can’t enjoy one moment in the sun? Am l a people pleaser so I work myself to the bone to make others happy while l suffer from not giving myself the attention I need? Am I too emotional so I make impulsive decisions that aren’t thought through just because I want to silence the loud emotions? Am l angry? Am l a good friend? Am I a good lover? Am I a good sibling? How do I know? Do I listen to others when they speak or it’s only my voice that must echo through the room? Am I a 25 year old baby – wanting to run from responsibility by blaming apartheid or slavery for my laziness , immaturity and life of unfruitfulness? What is the truth? When I discover the truth will l make amends or will l just run with the lies because everyone already knows me as “that” person?
You choose the image that is mirrored . If you’re not happy with it , change it. I had to change the angry Vanessa, I didn’t like her. If I did not intentionally change her, even those who love me with their whole being would leave. You cannot blame people for walking away from the nonsense you create – you need to STOP! As long as you keep making excuses, you’ll keep making mistakes and you will be responsible for the consequences. We have the word of God to help us every step of the journey! Away with the lies! Let us face the word of truth so we can live joyful fruitful lives, as beautiful as those pink roses.
“Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this.”
2 Timothy 2:7 NIV
IF YOU NEED HELP, GET HELP! Stop running from the reflection. You’re headed to a dead-end. Mirror mirror on the wall ; who is this person I see?
“Now there were four men with leprosy at the entrance of the city gate. They said to each other, “Why stay here until we die?”
2 Kings 7:3 NIV
It’s time to make amends.
