Seeing God's Face

“To love another person is to see the face of God.” ~ Victor Hugo, Les Misérables

I wept this afternoon as I was transported back to the time of the French Revolution and was immersed in the famous story of Jean Valjean. There were so many amazing quotes and themes in this story. For me, there was much significance in the mentality towards prisoners. I was struck too at the hatred that possessed Valjean and how he was transformed into a gentle, loving soul. He truly was the face of God a number of times throughout the movie. We reflect what we desire and his deep desire to keep his eyes on God's grace shone brightly from him and brought light to the darkness of his world.

I keep thinking about my resolutions for the year and how I just want to be more kind and sow seeds of peace. Valjean inspired me to live this goal as he acted with mercy and kindness. The movie is a redemption film, a love story, a history lesson, a tale of hope, and an inspiration. It shows how people can be selfish or righteous; others show extraordinary signs of grace and forgiveness.

We have choices. We can let our past destroy us or we can rise above and beyond what bond us to freedom. We can act out of revenge or mercy. We can let the world know our deeds of goodness or have them discover them happenstance. We can redefine ourselves. We can be selfish or selfless. There were moments in this film that broke my heart and there were moments that blessed me.

In this first week of 2013, you may still be pondering what lies ahead and what is your role in it as I do. Create a new you this year and bring more goodness to our world.

Peace,

Suzanne