During my senior year of college, I had a killer schedule with early morning classes five days a week. So, every morning I would stumble into the bathroom and follow the well-worn trail from the day before.
First, I would turn on the shower because the hot water took a long time waking up too. Second, I would brush my teeth at the bathroom sink. This was a two-stage process. Before brushing, I would swish around an anti-plaque rinse in my mouth.
I picked up the clear bottle, poured the green liquid into the blue cap and tossed it back into my mouth. About three swishes into it, I knew something was horribly wrong. It felt like I had just shoved a hundred bees into my mouth, and they were all jamming their stingers into my tongue at the same time.
I spat into the sink. There were no more clouds in my head now. I was definitely awake. What in the world just happened?
It wasn’t until that very moment that I noticed something that I should have detected long before. I had two bottles on my sink that were exactly the same. They both were clear. They both were the same shape and size. The blue caps were identical, and they both were filled with green liquid. Side-by-side they stood like twins for weeks, but they were very different on the inside. One contained Plax anti-plaque solution. The other was filled with Noxema astringent. Unfortunately, I had grabbed the wrong bottle.
Trust me. I know. It is what’s on the inside that counts! Though they looked exactly the same on the outside, they drastically made two different impressions on me.
What about you? When people look to you will they be left with a pleasant or a caustic taste in their mouth? We all may clean up well and look like we have it all together. But what’s on the inside? Do we truly care for those around us and work to be a gentle salve for those we meet? The bible says: “Your beauty should not come from outward adornment…Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.” 1 Peter 3:3-4
Yours in Faith,
Roy Ice