Tuesday, March 1, 2016

Created in the Image of God

"God created mankind, in his own image, in the image of God" Genesis 1:27

This is one of my favorite verses in the Bible. It can be interpreted in many different ways but I find it full of grace in times when I am feeling vulnerable, alone or like I am just not "enough". God created us in God's image. God created us for good. God created us knowing that we would fail but God created us. 

Recently we had a baptism at church where I was able to assist. Right before it was time for the service to start I was told that the family was unsure of how the two boys would behave. They were about 5 and 6 years old and were a bit ornery. To attempt to make it better our Pastor had the boys kneel at the altar. When they came up to be baptized I could see that these two boys could be a bit of a handful but something amazing happened that day. These little children of God knelt at the altar, looked at Pastor Nanette with eyes of wonder and bowed their heads while she baptized them. My eyes filled with tears. I knew that God was present in that moment and had offered grace to these precious children in a time where no one was quite sure what would happen. 

Shortly after the baptism I learned that these boys had been adopted and by the way in which the parents were speaking may have not come from the healthiest of backgrounds. It all made sense why the parents were nervous and why these boys had trouble. I got into my car and burst into tears. These two boys are like many of the children that I work with everyday in my career as a Shelter Manager. We see children that have witnessed horrific violence, that believe the way to solve problems is with anger, that have been exposed to drugs, etc... All of these children, including the ones at church, are simply children born into a life they did not choose. They are all children of God born of innocence and purity into a life of chaos, fear and uncertainty. Yet in moments like the baptism, they are offered hope and light.

I do not believe we are born sinners. I do not believe that God created us in his image to be people of violence, greed, hostility, oppression, etc... The world in which we have created has led us down a path of destruction yet there is always hope. I go through each day and look at every situation with the belief that God is present. That through the Holy Spirit, God never leaves us. Even in our darkest of moments and the times that we feel the most anger toward God, God is still there. God offers us grace, mercy and love with the hope that we will act as God's people, created in God's image to offer hope and light to these around us. 

My prayer today is that we can all look at each other with grace. That we no longer look at each other and decide that we are "bad". That we look at each other as children of God and know that we can offer mercy to those around us. That as people of God we can fulfill God's call by being present with those around us, helping those in need and recognizing that when we fall short or don't know how to pick ourselves up God is there. When you feel alone, vulnerable and like you aren't "enough" remember that each of us is created in the image of God and with that knowledge we are able to overcome all of the dark and walk into the light of hope. Amen.