Two Years Already

Today marks two years since 

my mom left us to take her rightful place in heaven.

Though I miss her every day, 

I have never once wished her back.

She lived two lifetimes in one.

 It’s amazing the flood of memories that come 

after a person has gone.

Two years have passed and still they come.

 As I look at photos of her and her life, 

I stand in awe of the woman that she was 

(is).

Every time I look into those eyes, 

I see her soul;

 the “real” her; 

the perfect child of God.

It is strange how we perceive one another

 (and even ourselves) 

based upon outside appearances and/or circumstances.

Yet, when I look at a photo, 

I see beyond all of that. 

This is how God sees us.

He doesn’t perceive us based upon 

outside appearances or circumstances.

He sees, perceives and knows us

 based upon the complete and perfect work of Christ.

We are His children.

He sees the soul.

He knows us better than we know ourselves.

He loves who we are in Him.

He loves who He created us to be.

And I realize once again; 

we have no business judging one another.

We really only have the right to judge ourselves.

And not for the purpose of self-condemnation, 

but for the purpose of seeing our condition at that moment 

so that we may choose to allow Holy Spirit

to continue to transform us 

into the perfect child of God that we already are.

This is how I see my mom now.

With her passing, I have come to realize that

 I have spent far too much of my life 

only seeing the outside appearances of people. 

I have spent too many years 

glancing at the facades that they have created

 instead of looking beyond that and into the depth 

of the perfect child that they truly are.

I am in awe of how the Lord

 has used my mom’s passing to remind me of 

the depth of empathy for others that He has placed inside of me 

and has given me a passion for seeing people as He sees them.

I love to look at people; 

beyond the facades, dirt & muck;

 and to see who they are in Him.

And I love to remember my mom;

 to see her beautiful, easy smile,

 hear her contagious laugh, and yes, 

even her sarcastic humor 

and look forward to the day

we will be together once again.