Many have asked about the title of my book, In a Mirror Dimly. I used Paul’s words from 1 Corinthians as a title for one of my stories. An excerpt:
Last year I had cataract surgery. The morning after my first procedure I walked outside to retrieve my newspaper – yes, we older folks still get a newspaper – and I was astounded at how beautifully clear and bright were the colors of that December morning. It was a brightness that I had not appreciated in many years because of the clouding of my lens. And then … … I remembered the apostle Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians. “For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known.” (1 Cor 13:12 NASB)
Yes, more dimly than I could see with my cataracts. But even now I am amazed at the glory of His creation. Can you imagine what it will be like to see His works clearly? Without the corrupting haze of our sinful nature? Without the tarnish of the world around us?
Does this sound familiar in our times? How unclear and unstable is our world today. It seems sometimes that we wait for the next shoe to drop. But we have a promise, a promise that we will indeed appear before His throne to see Him face to face! We will see His country with all the beauty that He intended for us. We will appreciate the depth of colors, the majesty of the land. And it will then be our country as well. As David wrote in Psalm 19, “The heavens declare the glory of the LORD; And their expanse declares the work of His hands.” (Psalm 19:1 NASB) We won’t see a greasy and cloudy reflection of hatred and violence. We won’t see the stains of fear and despair. Instead we will see a perfect reflection, one in all its glory: the Glory of the Lord!
