Some people never smile. I was looking through some pics a friend shared on social media recently and there was a remarkable stoicism about one of the people. Even if others were smiling, this person was not. For some, smiling is culturally strange. My Indian (as in India, not Cherokee) brothers rarely smile for the camera. They can be laughing and carrying on but when the camera comes out, you’d think they were officiating the most somber of events. For others, it is superstition. Yes, some cultures actually believe that smiling for a picture can cause you to have your soul stolen.
For some others though, they don’t smile because their reason seems to be gone. They were hurt. Abused. Disappointed. And they have never reconciled that with the gospel. For them, it is the image of what’s wrong that drives them, or the pride of control that directs their steps. Refusing to yield to the emotional impetus to simply…smile.
Does smiling negate the hurt or the pain one has experienced? No, of course not. It does, however, find its source in a different place. For those who can smile in adversity, their source is something greater than their pain.
If we, as believers, are to thrive in this life, we must choose to root our actions in something greater than temporary circumstance. Yes, you were hurt. God saw it. And He sent His Son to pay your debt so one day…your tears could be wiped away and your pain could be a distant memory.
Yes, you did blow it. Over and over again. And again. And God sent His Son to settle the debt incurred so you could rejoice and experience a transcendent hope!
Yes, you have failed in the task; and, God chose to redeem you, restore you, indwell you, and entrust His glorious gospel to you. He “hired you” when life “fired” you for poor performance!
My wiring is such that I am hyper-critical of my own actions. It is a form of pride…and not the good kind. It is sin. It is rooted in a broken nature that wants to earn respect rather than receive position by grace. My hyper-criticism of self…is sin. I am a work in progress. I am not satisfied with where I am, but I am also not staying here.
The Psalmist writes: “But You O Lord, are a shield about me, My glory, and the One who lifts my head.” (Psalm 3:3). This truth reminds that when life and our performance demands we stare at the ground in shame and regret, in stoic reflection…God stretches out His hand, places it under our chin, and lifts our eyes to heaven.
You have failed, and Christ has overcome. You have faltered in your faith yet God remains faithful to His promise to you. You have rebelled and forsaken your calling, and God called you to be His own.
Today…by His grace and your willful actions…root your smile in His gospel rather than your circumstance…and SMILE.
Shalom.
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