During this time
of quarantine there have been many things that we haven’t been able to do, that
we were used to doing. The stay-at home order made me even more aware of the simple
little things that I would often take for granted. Honestly, I never even
really liked going to Wal-Mart until I was told to stay home and not go, or
that when I did the number of people would be limited. Going to the gym, to the
mall, or even to church, are all things that we have not been able to do during
this time (honestly, I don’t go to the gym but it sounded good when I wrote
it).
My
point today is that there are many things that we miss. I have been thinking
about what I miss the most. No, going to the gym isn’t one of them. The worship
and community life of the church is something that I miss, and being a pastor that
is probably a good thing. I miss visiting people in their homes, and making
rounds to the nursing homes where I have members staying as residents. I even
miss going to the hospital and seeing some of my chaplain friends.
I miss going to the store and
talking to a cashier without a plexi-glass barrier between us, and I miss
standing in line without 6 feet of required distance in between me and the
other person. OK, so I don’t really miss standing in line either, but I was
just making a point about the social distance.
But
all of these regulations are for good reason, and should be taken seriously. Of
course there are other things that we can do even in the midst of what we can’t
right now.
Of
all these things, however, the one thing that I miss the most is seeing people’s
smiles.
When
we wear a mask it’s hard to see the smile.
1
Corinthians 3 tells the story of Moses meeting with God on the mountain and wearing
a veil, or a covering, over his face when he came back among the people. The
reason was because Moses’ face was shining so brightly with the glory of God
that it would literally freak the people out if they saw it themselves. So,
Moses covered it up when he was around the people, he wore a veil over his
face. But when he went back up the mountain to be in the presence of God, he
would take it off.
Now
I know that the reason we wear masks today is not to cover up the glory of God
from other people seeing that on our faces, but rather to cover up the
possibility that we would get others sick from what is coming out of our
mouths. But, work with me here for just a minute.
It
is recommended that we cover our faces when we are around other people for the
time being. And there is good reason for that. But when we are alone in the
presence of our Lord, we can take that mask off.
“And
we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being
transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the
Lord”- 1 Corinthians 3:18.
So
here’s what I am thinking, since our mouths are covered with our masks, and
other people can’t see our smile, then we have to let that smile shine with
more than just our mouths. We need eye-smiles. Smiles that let another person
know, even from behind the mask, that this will all be OK, that this will all
be well, and that God is with us. And when we come before the Lord and have our
time alone with him, remove that mask, that veil, and as you do allow His grace
to remove any mask that is covering who we really are, so that our authentic
selves may be in communion with our Creator.
I
miss seeing your smile. So when we pass by one another, even at a 6’ distance,
let your smile shine with more than just your mouth. Allow that God-glory to
radiate from you. Because right now, we all need that.
Smile on!
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