A few nights ago, my husband and I attended an antique auction with some friends and family members. Although this is a weekly event for our little family, it is a rare occasion that we actually purchase something. For the most part, we like the atmosphere, the excitement of the bid and the camaraderie of spending time with people we like. As auctions go, the price of an item is usually determined by the number of people interested in it or sometimes the number of antique dealers in the audience as they tend to drive the price up. On this particular night there were very few people in the audience and seemingly no dealers. We watched in awe as pieces that would normally sell for $800 or $900 were sold for $100 or $200. We had admired a couple of pieces at the beginning but didn’t bid when they came up to the block because we really didn’t need any more furniture. Towards the end of the night, when the crowd was even more vacant than before, a 9ft mirrored armoire came up on the block for auction. It was very pretty but the mirror was distorted and one of the panels appeared to be loose and very crooked. The auctioneer tried to start the bidding at $100 but no one was interested. The initial bid continued to drop until at $20 my husband said, “I have to do this,” and he bid. Hearing that someone had taken the bait, another audience member also bid, bringing the price up to $30 to which my husband bid again. The other bidder looked at the armoire, made a face, and shook her head no and I understood; it looked like it needed a lot of work, but for $40 it was a steal. We got the armoire home, unpacked it and took a good look at it for the first time, literally. My dad opened the door and said, “Oh look, the mirror is just held in place by a panel. You could easily replace this with a $10 mirror and it will look good as new.” My husband walked over and looked at the panel and noticed that it was not damaged, it had just slipped out of the groove during shipping, a small adjustment later and the armoire looked perfect and once placed in its spot in the living room was the focal point of the room.
That night as I lay in bed I started thinking about the armoire and how undesirable it had seemed from afar and how the outside appearance had almost kept me from realizing its full worth. I realized that sometimes, like the armoire, I am quick to judge people, relationships, and opportunities and as a result I never fully appreciate their value. Just like the old saying, “You can’t judge a book by its cover,” I think I need to be reminded to see other people as my heavenly Father sees them: from the inside out. But more importantly, I need to remember that my inside is more important than my outside. I wonder how different I would be if I spent as much time working on my character and my relationship with God as I did primping and pruning my outward appearance?
That night as I lay in bed I started thinking about the armoire and how undesirable it had seemed from afar and how the outside appearance had almost kept me from realizing its full worth. I realized that sometimes, like the armoire, I am quick to judge people, relationships, and opportunities and as a result I never fully appreciate their value. Just like the old saying, “You can’t judge a book by its cover,” I think I need to be reminded to see other people as my heavenly Father sees them: from the inside out. But more importantly, I need to remember that my inside is more important than my outside. I wonder how different I would be if I spent as much time working on my character and my relationship with God as I did primping and pruning my outward appearance?
Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.
Samuel 16:7
Samuel 16:7
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