For Lent, I am walking us through a book called Apprenticeship With Jesus. You can follow along 
by reading my highlights and reflections. Extensive previews of the book, including excerpts, can be found through Google Books and Amazon, as well as eBook purchasing options.
Day 9: The Good: I Am Better Than I Think
– “There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal.” – C.S. Lewis
– We all have a seed of divinity inside – the Imago Dei, the image of God
– Image of God = all of the God like qualities that enable human beings to reflect divine character
– We are most like God when all of our components are working in harmony to produce creativity, compassion, and community
If Lewis is right and there is no such thing as a mere mortal or if we all possess the image of God then it is scary to think of what a sorry job we all have done with that divine seed. Especially those of us who follow Christ and understand how God views humanity. How convicting to think there are elements of divinity embedded within us yet we chase after everything that is counter to God and against his nature.
Apprentice Activity: Seeing the Beautiful In Others and Ourselves
– Here is C.S. Lewis’ Weight of Glory sermon
– Go to the last page (p. 9) and in the last column in the middle of the page you will see a section that says, “You have never talked to a mere mortal…”
– Slowly read from this point to the end of the sermon
– Use the rest of the day viewing others differently in light of the awareness of their divine spark. May you begin to treat others in a way that understands their possession of the Image of God
We are such creatures of habit and view certain situations so rigidly. Our interactions with others when we are driving has a certain take to it. Our interactions at a restaurant is similar to everytime we have ever stepped foot in a restaurant. We may find ourselves treating people a certain way at Wal-Mart that we would never at church. In other words, during this activity, I had to intentionally jolt myself away from my natural pattern of interactions in certain situations to remind myself that these people in front of me are made in the image of God. It was much harder than I expected.
What is Jesus teaching me? I realized through this activity that I spend much of my day in fear of other people. No, I don’t have some weird social anxiety but I am constantly fearful that someone is going to demand something from me that I can’t deliver. It was pretty disheartening how ungracious I am at times because I think everyone wants something from me. This shows how little trust I have in God for my interactions with others.
How do you respond to others? Do you treat others as if they were “mere mortals” or do you view them as keepers of the very Image of God?
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