Genesis 3:7: “Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.”
The glass frog is native to the Central American Rainforests. The general background coloration of most glass frogs is primarily lime green. Still, the abdominal skin of some members of this family is transparent and translucent, giving the glass frog its common name. When active, their blood makes them visible; when sleeping, most of the blood is concealed in the liver, hiding them. Glass frogs are arboreal, living mainly in trees, feeding on small insects, and only coming out for mating season. Their transparency conceals them very effectively when sleeping on a green leaf, as they habitually do.
I remember clearly, the many years that I hid my vulnerability from others. My fig leaves stayed intact as an imposter masqueraded as my true self. Like the glass frog, I played it safe, staying on my leaf, rarely revealing the contents of my inside world for fear that others would harm me, or worse yet, reject me if they knew who I was.
As God began to heal me, it became clear that part of my journey was to become active in my true self, which would expose me, just like the frog when his blood flows, making him visible. But God assured me that he had created me for an incredible purpose, that hiding my life away would never accomplish.
After all, the scriptures are clear. “No one lights a lamp and then covers it with a washtub or shoves it under the bed. No, you set it up on a lamp stand so those who enter the room can see their way” (Luke 8:16-18). God asked me to live my life out loud like a city on a hill. As I realized that “my life was not my own, I was bought for a very high price” (I Cor 6:19-20), it was easier to come out of hiding. To be given such purpose, and by the King of the Universe calling me his own child, I stopped hiding.
In what areas are you hiding? Does your life resemble that of the glass frog when sleeping or when active? I encourage you, friends, to take the bushel off your light and shine for all the world to see. After all, your light may be the only way others find their own way.
And that’s the mid-week memo,
Colleen
