First Impressions

Looking back on my life, historically my first impression would be better classified as a wrong impression.  There have been many times I had a negative first impression of people who later ended up being among my best friends!  The first glance or personal interaction can distort the truth of reality.  People are more than just a face and a name, and it is a shame for us to judge by appearance.  It is not above a man to do what is shameful, or to even make a practice of it.

When I arrived in Sydney, I took the train from the terminal to the home I am staying at in Baulkham Hills.  The train was creaky and old, and as I rode the train from the Central Station tall graffiti-covered brick walls loomed on either side of the tracks.  Rubbish lined the sides of the tracks as we sped under grey, overcast skies.  Serious people stared straight ahead as the train jostled from side to side.  Abandoned buildings with broken windows, the same red bricks, the same graffiti flew by kilometer after kilometer.  It would be a lie if my first impression of Sydney was very good.  Everything looked grim, dim, run-down, and tired.

The next day I took the same train on a trip to the wharf where the world-famous Opera House and the Sydney Harbor Bridge are.  They were an amazing sight, as the sun filtered through patchy fog and wind brushed cool upon skin.  As I spoke with a couple pastors on the wharf, countless people walked by taking pictures and videos of the famous sights.  Ships carried sightseers through the choppy water in the bay.  I didn't bring my camera with me, but I'll never forget the sights of Circular Quay.

Since my arrival I've met many beautiful people, experienced wonderful hospitality, and have seen a beauty that was indistinguishable at first.  I flew into Sydney as a tourist and after five hours I had a picture of what Sydney was like.  But as I might have predicted, my first impression was not a correct impression.  Sure, there are abandoned buildings and tons of graffiti, but a city is more than buildings and weather.  The beauty in a city is not in design or ornamentation, but in the people and relationships you have there.  In the same way, the beauty of a person is not in their proportion, face, or figure, but their possession of a God-breathed soul.  In every person there is the mark of the divine, for God has formed man in His image.

Had I designed or engineered a world-famous landmark, I would have an appreciation that no one else could possibly have.  The architect would not love the structure he designed because the opera or plays that take place within, but because he poured his own ideas and creativity into it.  When we look at a person, we may not see what strikes us as physical beauty.  But in every human body God has breathed a living soul, an everlasting component unique to a human being.  God does not have wrong first impressions of a person, for He does not see as a man sees.  God looks upon the heart, and sees His creation through eyes of love and deep affection.  The God who created the heavens and the earth, knows all the stars by name, and made every person unique knows intimately all His creation.

I am blessed beyond measure to know that God always judges righteously.  He does not "rush to judgment" or make a mistake based on a wrong first impression.  God's natural inclination is to love what He has created, for all that He has made is good.  It is man who refuses that love by rebellion, sin, and doing what is right in our own eyes.  God has revealed His love to us by sending Jesus Christ to be the sacrifice for the sins of the world.  He demonstrated His love for us, for while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Sydney is a beautiful place, and all that God has created is good.  Man pollutes, destroys, ostricizes, hates, judges, and lies.  But God is not like a man that He should lie or speak unrighteously.  His judgments are not tainted by first impressions, for He knew your name before the foundations of the world were laid.  God is not like me, who judged a city by the rubbish and graffiti that litters the railways.  Regardless if you see yourself as a graffiti covered building or a downtown high-rise, God sees you in truth.  If God is for you, who can be against you?