Needing a Makeover?

As I write this my living room is being painted. The kitchen is finished and it looks great. I got a bit of a rush when I walked in there this morning. It is a totally different room. It’s brighter and more inviting. It’s just as I had envisioned and it makes me feel brighter, too.

How we look to the world around us matters. Just as my walls needed a makeover, sometimes we need a makeover, too. It is important how we present ourselves to those we encounter. I’m not talking about changing clothes, though modesty should be considered when in public view. I am talking about our outward attitude as we show ourselves to the world, what people see.

I am guilty of showing a bad attitude at times. I just get up on the wrong side of the bed and my general deportment is one of irritability. I complain and am short with people. My coworkers know I am a Christian and they are judging me all the time. But the real judgment is of Christ. I am his representative on earth. They see him through me and sometimes it isn’t pretty.

I have a choice each day as to how I will look in the presence of others. There are times when how we look is very hard to control. Pain and suffering from circumstances overwhelm us and smiles do not come readily. I do not speak to that. I speak of the normal day to day attitudes we have, the ones we really can choose to exhibit. The truth is I can choose to go with a bad attitude, or I can pray and make the real effort to put a smile on my face. When I make the effort to try and be pleasant I find that a better attitude will always follow. There is a total makeover.

Today I am feeling good and it shows, but tomorrow could be a whole different story. I will have to make a choice as to whether I let a negative attitude rule the day, or ask for grace and go with the positive. I really need a makeover now and then because people are watching. So, I will put on the garment of praise and be sure the Jesus seen in me will be one of love, joy and peace, because it matters.