«I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely, For My anger has turned away from him» (Hosea 14:4).
The premise of this famous American reality show was simple: you could get five thousand dollars to buy yourself a fabulous new wardrobe, but in return, you had to get rid of your old clothes and allow two fashion consultants to examine and criticize you in front of a 360-degree mirror (and, of course, in front of the television cameras that were broadcasting to the whole world). Would you do it? For twelve seasons, hundreds of participants were encouraged to stand in front of the dreaded mirror to receive a shower of criticism. Why? Because they thought the result was worth it. At the end of a somewhat humiliating process, they would look better and have nicer clothes. Actually, I don’t know if I could bring myself to do that.
Sometimes we believe that inviting the Spirit to examine us will be like that reality show. We know that the Spirit needs to reveal our sins to us, but we believe He will do so in a cruel or mocking way. However, the Holy Spirit is quite a gentleman! Yes, He must often point the mirrors at our hearts and say, «Dear one, that attitude looks ugly on you.» And that hurts without a doubt, but the process doesn’t end there. The Spirit then rotates the mirrors to point upwards. Then the beauty, forgiveness, and restoration of Jesus are offered to us completely free of charge. In Faith and Works, Ellen G. White explained the process with these words: «It is through the influence of the Holy Spirit that we are convicted of sin and feel our need of pardon. None but the contrite are forgiven; but it is the grace of God that makes the heart penitent. «— ch. 3, p. 38. It is grace that causes us to repent!
The Holy Spirit must show us the ugliness of our choices so that we can renounce them. However, He also knows that if the mirror only points inwards and never upwards, we would lose hope. He then shows us the exuberant beauty of love with which the Father wants to beautify us. The Spirit transforms us by taking our shame and covering us with love, not the other way around!
Dear Lord, I thank You for the gift of repentance. I appreciate it because I can approach You without fear of ridicule. You only reveal to me my nakedness in order to cover it, not to expose me to others. Your grace is the best clothing I can wear!
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Take From: Devotional Thoughts for Women 2022
«NO FEARS»
BY: VANEZA PISSUTO
Collaborators: Alexandra Pérez & Angelica Cuate.
