Faces

Mary’s Monday Musings to Quilt Encouragement
Faces

Faces, the faces of people I love. Your faces that’s what I miss most in the midst of this Pandemic. I even miss encountering faces I don’t know at all, but had the privilege to see as I used to walk into a store or when I used to walk across a parking-lot to my car. Even if I don’t know a person, faces can convey the mood of the moment. The faces we pass may smile a greeting, or wear a troubled frown. Others aren’t noticing anyone around because they’re preoccupied with thinking about what’s next in the day. Faces tell us so much without speaking a single word. Each person was created with a unique visage to reflect the person behind the face. A face carries a hint of what life holds at the moment or held in the past if we bother to notice. UNLESS that face is wearing a mask! We still can glean a spark of personality from the eyes, but they barely show when scrunched between a mask and a hat. Somehow merely covering half a face changes our interchange as we pass one another. I will rejoice when I can see your face again. I pray mine will shine with delight at the privilege of seeing you.

Even without wearing a physical mask, we can paste a blank, detached look on our face that defies interpretation and holds a stranger away from discerning anything about us for that moment. We can hide our internal reactions from others, but we cannot wear a mask to fool our creator. He knows what is going on in our minds, in our hearts, in our thoughts. What’s more, He cares about our joys and our heartaches, our thoughts, and our reactions.

Let’s ask him to use our faces to reflect His character and love to others. Let’s ask Him to help us discern the joys in others’ lives and be glad for them. When we glimpse the heartaches faces reveal, let’s ask God how we can help alleviate internal suffering even if it is only with a momentary smile. Thank you, God, for creating each unique face, and help us remember its value to you as we interact with people.