Seeing the beloved in the mirror

My wife and I do at times discuss the specifics of our political thinking with some indication about how we vote and do so without rancour as often we know we are on similar sides of various issues. However, a number of you will find that you and your partner may be on opposite sides and choose not to go to deeply with any political discussions. I have life experiences that I have never discussed with my parents because I am not sure that they would understand. As my wife’s children have grown, there are likely adventures and understandings of my wife and my own that we did not share with them. This was so that we would not colour their own exploration and learning in the world too much. 

We have trusted that each of my wife’s boys and both our sets of parents love us. I would think the same could be said for the friends we are close to. They would likely say that they would love us no matter what we might do. In all cases, I work not to abuse that trust and that great love. Still, I feel sure, in my heart and mind, that there are things I could do that would sever those significant relationships in my life. There are actions that could be taken that would be a bridge too far. 

Their love is patient and kind, for the most part. It is generally not jealous or rude. However, I worry that it is only thus because they do not fully know me. Rarely do we fully plumb the depths of what our faith means or share about the one (we call God) who knows us best and loves us most. The one who made us and from whom no secrets are hid. The one who cannot be separated from us is the same one who loves us, inside and outside, with deep, abiding, merciful love. 

At times I also have to admit that I happily rejected my parents’ values, deciding they cared more about manners than anything else. In fact, my wife’s boys could very well make the same observation about us. I had to grow up - they had to grow up - and I mean really grow up. We needed to come to understand that our parents emphasised hospitality and care for others as an expression of their faith. The boy’s needed to come to understand we were seeking to follow the same path.  

These ways of treating all with compassion and care were not preached or described in theological terms; they simply were sought to be lived. How we treat people really does matter, not because it’s “proper,” but because it’s the gospel in a word: love. When we see ourselves in a mirror, we see parts we accept and parts we reject. Yet, God sees beyond the mirror into a bit of creation that has been beloved since time before time. To be known by God is be loved— fully, completely, eternally. It is important to remind ourselves that we are the beloved.