Hidden Color

It’s not the same as where I grew up.

Nothing can quite compare with all of the amazing color displays we would see every fall in New England.

Fall colors in the back yard where I grew up

In California, many people plant exotic species to try to pick up some of that fall feel.

The Chinese Pistache tree in our front yard in Fresno, California

But this whole fall color thing is really amazing.  If I recall some of my biology properly, the colors we see in the fall are present all year round, but are masked by the chlorophyll.  Then, before the tree starts shutting down for the winter, a lot of nutrients and stuff are shuttled out of the leaves and into the tree.

First the leaves change color.

Then the leaves fall off.

(Unlike my hair, most of which fell out before the rest started turning gray.)

As a result, we get to enjoy this awesome color display each year in climates that are conducive to it.

In Thailand, we don’t get in on this phenomena.  (But we also don’t get the cold weather, either, so I guess that’s a bit of a tradeoff for us.)

I don’t suppose God had to make things as pretty as this, but He did, and I’m glad for it.

I think people can often be like these trees.  Sometimes, when we first meet people, we don't see what they are really like.  We may never see it.  Often we are wearing masks, so people won't see the real us.  We may do this intentionally or unintentionally. Sometimes our low self-esteem makes us think people won't like us if they really knew us.  Or there might be some secret that we try to hide--some event from our past (or present) that if people knew about, would really change how they felt about us.   Sometimes, we may have some character flaws that we try to keep under control (which can be a good thing, if they are damaging traits).

Often, it is during times of stress, when our true colors come out.  Good character qualities may come out when we have to rise to an occasion. Our more negative traits may show when we lose control.

Why are we so afraid to be ourselves, to show our true colors?  Do we have a lot of skeletons in our closet?  It seems like wearing a mask is often the norm in society.

One of the more interesting compliments Jesus makes about someone is in John 1:47, when Jesus approaches Nathanael for the first time.

When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, "Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is nothing false." (NIV)
 
The New Living Translation puts it: he was a man of complete integrity.  This is the only one of his disciples about whom  Jesus makes this statement.  Was he the only one who wasn't afraid to be himself?  Was it because he was the only one of the twelve who had nothing to hide?

We don't get to see the pretty colors of the trees but once a year, and that just before they fall off.

 But we can be people of integrity all year round.  How good it would be if we didn't hide parts of ourselves because we had nothing to hide.

Paul writes of a day when this will happen.

Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. 1 Corinthians 13:12 (NIV)

In heaven, there will be no more masks--no more hiding.  It will be like switching from the monotone green of summer to the brilliant blend of colors of fall.  And all of our beauty, which may have been hidden by our sin all of our lives, will shine for all to see.

Hidden power

Water can do amazing things.

When we were in Canada last September, we went to Maligne Canyon—a narrow gorge carved into the rock by water flowing down from Maligne Lake towards the Athabasca River.  Haw can water do this?



Later on, we were in Hood Canal in Washington State.  There, water trapped behind a dam in the mountains feeds into a pipe which turns generators to make electricity.



Water has this hidden source of power that enables it to do amazing things.

But I want to write about another source of hidden power in this world that can accomplish amazing things—the Spirit of God.

Last July, I found myself asking, “What should I study for my next language check?” We had just come off a busy season near the end of our first term and our team leader asked us what we were planning on studying next. I told her that I would like to prepare my first sermon in Thai. For subject matter I thought I would write about the impact of having idols, based on some of my recent scripture reading.

My language helper would be Knot, a young man who decided to follow Jesus back in February. What I did not know at the time was that he and his wife had an idol in their car. Even though they did not believe the idol had any power any more, they had not thrown it out because it was given to them as a gift from a close friend. I found out later that some of the leaders in the church had been talking with him and his wife about this.

As we were looking at various passages in scripture relating to idols while preparing for the sermon, Knot told me about the idol in his car and why he still had it (by this time I had heard about it from others as well). The next week, Knot was busy, so his wife, Goi, was helping me. We were reading from 1 Corinthians where Paul writes about how eating food sacrificed to idols can cause others to stumble. I did not mention the idol in the car. But after we finished I overheard her talking to Knot about their idol and why, even though they may not believe the idol has any power, it might be something that keeps others from coming to Christ.

The next week, as I was again studying with Knot, he told me that they got rid of the idol from their car.

Jesus said:
When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. (John 16:13 ESV)

Even though others had tried to talk Knot and Goi into getting rid of the idol, it was as if they weren’t able to receive that counsel until they received it by the Holy Spirit working through the word of God

As we go about our work as missionaries, we can be tempted to rely on our own abilities and wisdom to get the work done. But we are most effective when our ministry is covered in prayer and we let God work in people’s lives. There is great power as the Holy Spirit works through the word of God.

Knot and Goi