I saw a man walking down the road the other day with a horribly disfigured face. My heart was immediately pierced as I thought about the hardship he must deal with because of the way he looks. I haven’t been able to get him out of my mind, so I’ve been praying for him. I’ve prayed that he would feel God’s acceptance, that he would feel God’s embrace and not feel alone or isolated because of the way he looks. I even prayed that God would send medical help to cosmetically transform his face.
That’s when the Lord stopped my prayers. “His appearance isn’t the issue I want to fix, Christy.”
For a moment, I was caught off guard. “What about the rejection he must face, Lord? Wouldn’t it be easier for him to receive your love from others if he didn’t look like that?”
“If I fix his face, Christy, he will still won’t be secure in me.”
Oh, ladies…isn’t that the way it is with us? We beg God to fix the outside, when the inside is where the issue is. If we don’t get to the root, the heart of the matter, in our own efforts we will fix the wrong thing.
Rarely is the root of our issue clearly exposed. The roots are underneath the surface. They’re buried. If we only fix the external, we delay or hinder the work God wants to do on the inside of us. God wants to heal us from the inside out. Let Him crack your shell so you can be completely free!
What about you? What do you need God to fix? Ask Him to begin on the inside. When His work is finished, you won’t just look good on the outside, you will be completely free!