Last night my daughter Isabelle was coloring on the table. “Isabelle, are we supposed to color on the table?” I asked. “No, daddy,” she mournfully replied. Frustrated, I quickly responded, “Honestly, how many times must we go through this?” With chin to chest, out of the top of her eyes, she answered, “Three?” Daddy was not happy. Well, I’d be lying if I didn’t chuckle a little at her honesty. After all, I offered that hanging curve ball right over the plate. Why am I surprised she took a swing?
Where did this answer come from? Does she actually think we would go through this routine three times before bath water was drawn for the evening? Do I normally give her “three strikes and you’re out?” Is she trying to convince me that “third time’s the charm” because in just two more strokes her masterpiece would be finished and whatever time-out I could throw at her would be worth it?
That night I looked at myself in the mirror, and I said, “Three times. Ha! Wait, did she get that from me?” There’s a sobering thought. I peered into the mirror for a long, pensive look. This is the person my daughter sees each and every day. Who am I? Now, there’s a sobering question.
“Who am I?” is a difficult question to answer. Logic breaks down when it is self-referential. Just take the sentence, “This sentence is false.” If the sentence is true, then it is false. If the sentence is false, then it must be true (I know, I probably need a hobby). So, how do I answer this question? Paul gives us a hint in Galatians 2:19-20, “For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me . . . so who is it then that I should see in the mirror? Who am I? I am a member of the body of Christ.
On the other hand, if Isabelle saw the light of Christ shining through me all the time, instead of “Three?” her response may have been, “Seventy times seven, father,” but that’s for another article.