Healing in the Eyes of Community

Have you ever thought about what you learn about yourself when you gaze into someone’s eyes: do you feel loved, accepted and cherished? do you feel scared, judged and dehumanized?

Think about the messages you received when you looked into your parents’ eyes. What do your friends think about you? What do the eyes of God reveal about who you really are?

Our view of how God sees us is often determined by how people treat us and affirm us. As we examine the various mental images and messages we gather about ourselves from the eyes of others, it can be easy to feel insecure and uncertain of our place and purpose in this world – especially if those messages have been quite varied. Yet, God says we are his beloved, his cherished son/daughter. His eyes are gentle, full of mercy and grace and he desires to be reconciled to his people.

The way to restore our view of ourselves from the broken messages received from others into the Truth of how God sees us is through community. Being in relationships with others  who model God’s grace, promotes healing of the wounds from our past. God lovingly created us in his image and placed us in a fallen world to bear that image.

How are you displaying God’s image in your community?