A Lesson From Seashells

While on a recent trip to Gulf Shores with our family I went for a walk on the beach with my oldest daughter, Haley. As we were walking along I would stop and pick up a seashell. Depending on what the seashell looked like, I would either rinse off the sand and place it in my pocket to keep or I would simply discard it, dropping it back on the seashore. Something occurred to me while doing this: I was only selecting and keeping the seashells that were pretty or those that were whole. I kept discarding the ones that were broken, cracked or not quite as pretty.

As I reflected on this process I had a thought: is this how we treat people? Our culture places great emphasis on beauty. From billboards to magazine covers, from television shows to commercials, it seems outward beauty is most desired. In fact, people go to great lengths to attain the beauty so craved by the world (facelifts, tummy tucks, etc.). In addition, many people have been taught to stay away from those people who aren’t “like us.” In other words, if someone has problems, or is slow or troubled, we dare not associate with them. After all, they’re not quite whole. So, like my seashells, we toss these people aside or simply ignore them.

If we buy into the world’s philosophy of what beauty is, or some erroneous teaching that tells us to disassociate ourselves from people not “like us,” then how will we be able to share the love of Jesus? Perhaps we need to take a good look in the mirror, or better yet, a good look in the Bible. In the Bible we learn that “none is righteous, no not one” (Rom. 3:23). So, lest we think we are whole, and have it all together and that others are beneath us, just remember: apart from God’s righteousness we are broken. In addition, we learn that Jesus came not “to call the righteous but sinners to repentance” (Lk. 5:32). He invested His life in broken people of His day. He did not pick and choose. He simply loved.