A few years back, our family lived in a town in New England that many believed looked exactly like a movie set. The restored buildings, pristine park and fountain looked as if they were constructed for Hollywood. Imagine Back to the Future. The churches, homes, and beaches were outwardly worthy of film and art. Spielberg couldn’t have dreamed up a much better set.
But the thought often burdened me. Behind a movie set are boards and nails slapped together to hold a pretend world in place. Our lives, I thought then- and still do, are often much the same way. We put on faces that make our lives look full and complete, while we might actually be hollow on the inside. We project our spiritual identity in going to a particular church or believing in an edited god, while we might actually be empty of God’s presence. We are tempted to hide our pain, our troubles, our flaws and sins behind walls of smiles. We step out in front of the cameras and yell “ACTION” to ourselves.
The outside of our lives might fool people, but not God. He is the one who yells “CUT” to our acting. He doesn’t look at the things people look at. People look at our outward movie-set appearance, but God looks at our hearts. We shouldn’t try to hold ourselves together with paint and support boards. There is only one piece of wood capable of doing that: the cross of Jesus. If we make our lives with anything else… we will be hollow.
If you have built up a facade, please let God fill up the emptiness behind it. Ask Him to tear down the boards you’ve slapped together. Let Him give you a true script to live by. In Him our insides become presentable and our real lives become the story.
