Just As He Was

I recently wandered around the local flower park with my camera and was so pleased to see a blackbird scuttling in and around small bushes and budding bulbs. It was beautifully black. So very black in contrast to its yellow beak and the yellow around its eye. It seemed quite tame and posed on a low wall while I tentatively clicked hoping to get a well focused shot in the cold wind.

At home I transferred my photos to the computer. I thought the photo had come out well and gave it a little extra enhancement. I was so thrilled with the loveliness of this plain black bird that I failed to notice at first that it's beak was dirty where it had been poking in the wet soil for worms. I thought about cloning out the dirt with Photoshop so that it's beak would be perfectly yellow and the photo would look better, but I couldn't do it. This lovely bird had allowed me to see that picking at the ground for food was all part of its own special life and I had captured that.

Then, I thought, why do we feel that we can't go to God or ask Him into our lives unless we are faultless and clean? We hesitate to call on Him for anything thinking we won't be heard or answered as we haven't been the person we erringly believe he wants us to be. We are so acceptable to God even with dirty hands and unscrubbed minds. He wants us to communicate with Him regardless of all our flaws and shortcomings. He takes us as we are and with one little wipe of His redeeming love he makes us clean.

The blackbird was just being a blackbird with his little dirty beak. He didn't ask me to wait until he washed his face before I took the photo. God knows what our lives are like. He knows we get dirty sometimes. Don't wash for Him, don't cover up or Photoshop the mess off. He's already seen it and, guess what, He still loves and wants us. His acceptance of us is without question. He waits eagerly to show us what real love and acceptance is. 

Below is a link to a wonderful version of 'Just As I Am'.

Click for Video 'Just As I Am'.