Shiny Faces

As I go into the jail to proclaim the gospel with evidence, I never know who will choose to come to Bible study—or why. One day, a woman shared with me why she had decided to come. Although her mom had been raised in the church, they hadn’t been taken as kids because her mom didn’t want to “force her beliefs on them.” So, while not raised as a Christian, she was aware of “them” and it seemed to her in her daily encounters with people that at times she was quite certain she could identify them. There was something different . . . it seemed there was a glow about them. She and her boyfriend came to call them “shiny faces.” Upon leaving a gas station, for example, she might turn to him and say, “She was a ‘shiny face,’ wasn’t she!” It was as if there was a light from within . . .  The difference was undeniable, and always desirable.

I am uncertain of the circumstances that brought her to the jail, but once there she received a Life Recovery Bible. As she opened the cover to check it out, a verse at the bottom of the very first page caught her eye.  It was Psalm 34:5:

“Those who look to him are radiant;

their faces are never covered with shame.”

She had been right! They were “shiny faces”! This simple connection between what the Bible says and what she saw in the world was an important part of her newfound spark of faith. It was a joy to watch her seek truth and grow in her faith as she made more connections between what the Bible says and the evidence we see in the world. 

As I thought about her testimony, I found her observations were convicting in some ways. I couldn’t help but wonder . . . was I a “shiny face”? How many people who claim to be Christians shine in this dark world? Maybe it’s time to ask . . . are you a “shiny face”?

S.H.I.N.E.

Soaking in His Illumination Now and for Eternity

“Those who look to him are radiant;

their faces are never covered with shame.”

Psalm 34:5 NIV

“In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may

see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

Matthew 5:16 NIV

“For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.

Live as children of light…”

Ephesians 5:8 NIV