Open the Curtains

It’s kind of chaotic at my house this week.  We are having some work done on the outside that requires the carpenters and workmen to be all over the place.  They are in my driveway blocking my car, setting up equipment on my back patio, crawling all over the roof and the walls and the porch…you get it.  Not a complaint, but rather a fact – they are everywhere they need to be to get the job done.

I’m a hybrid worker nowadays, so I can normally escape to the office, but today required me to stay home to get some things done.  It is my first day in a fishbowl and I don’t want to open the curtains.  As an introvert, I want my privacy and my home is my haven.  My curtains will stay closed if people are all up close to my windows.

My plants, however, need that sunlight.  It’s a beautiful sunny day and I have some green babies that need to eat.  So, does my desire to feel secure outweigh my plants need for sunlight?

One of my best friends gave me a word of edification in the bathroom at church last Sunday.  The Lord told me, through her, three things:  1) Promotion is coming soon and I’ll know it when it comes; 2) He will reveal Himself to me in a way unique to just me that may not be understandable to others; 3) and I am desirable because He desires me. 

On the last one, she told me to look myself square in the eye in the mirror and tell myself that I am beautiful and desirable.  Not desirable in a sexy way, but because God Himself desires me.  That shifted something in my heart.  It made me realize that I hide a lot from the world that needs to be seen, just because I feel insecure.  I close the curtains so no one can see me at my vulnerable times, shutting out any light that could get out or in. 

Jesus says in Matthew 5:

¹⁴ “You are the light of [Christ to] the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; ¹⁵ nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. ¹⁶ Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good deeds and moral excellence, and [recognize and honor and] glorify your Father who is in heaven.

Do you hide yourself behind curtains in a fear that others will judge you?  Do you hide the light of Jesus from others because you don’t want anyone to reject you?  That is exactly what blocks the light from getting to those who need it most.  Fear of vulnerability, fear of rejection, fear of judgement – all of those are curtains that keep the light from getting out or in.

I’d like to say I just threw all my curtains open to let all the light in for my green babies, but I only opened the curtains on the ends of the room where there weren’t any workers.  The porch curtains stayed closed until I could retreat to my office above the garage (once my hair dried and I could be seen by other humans).  It was enough.

You are enough. He is enough.  Open the curtains and let the light shine.