But this view of God is incomplete and the beauty isn’t destroyed when we dare to turn, it is enhanced and multiplied. I was looking at God without turning the object chamber, enjoying the beauty of this view, never even thinking there could be another just as beautiful, just as remarkable. It appears to be beautifully perfect and knowing the delicate balance of all the pieces, we dare not move the kaleidoscope for fear we will destroy the structure that we have grown so fond of. Sometimes we enjoy the view we have of God’s kaleidoscope so much that we don’t want it to change. Each time the community moved and changed they helped me to see and understand a new facet of God. I came to see that God was not only a crucial part of the community kaleidoscope, but at the same time, an entire kaleidoscope all of His own. ![]() I was broadening my knowledge as well as my experience. Like a kaleidoscope turning to make a new design, my community slowly changed and with that change came a different understanding of God. As a youth I moved to Oklahoma and beheld a new community, just as intricately beautiful as the first. In addition to what my family taught me, there were nursery workers, Sunday school teachers, choir directors, Skylark and Oriole leaders, camp directors and counselors, testimony givers, church cleaners, bulletin typers, Bible school workers and countless others who made up the community of my childhood each one enabling me to begin to see my vision of God. It was in the kaleidoscope of community that I first discovered God. When ordinary people are willing to join in true community, the light of Christ touches them and transforms ordinary into extraordinary. Community reveals who we really are to ourselves and to others, enabling us to see a true beauty that only exists as we take part in community. Seeing God in you helps me see God in myself and in those who aren’t a part of our community. Community blesses us with a reflection of God in ourselves and each other. Community can be an instrument to enhance our vision as well. The optics in a kaleidoscope are used to enhance our vision. Diverse ideas, viewpoints and experiences are necessary if we are going to come even remotely close to sharing the love of Christ through human interaction. Everyone benefits when there is variety in giftedness. Diverse shapes and colors are necessary to create the beautiful patterns. It is impossible to create the intricate splendor without the benefit of a variety of pieces. Kaleidoscopes are never made with only one or two items inside. ![]() ![]() We are each uniquely gifted, marvelously created people, whose lives can reflect the love of God in a way that displays the multi-faceted God we believe in and the One we pray others will come to know and love. Just as seemingly ordinary items become beautiful when placed together in a kaleidoscope, seemingly ordinary people become beautiful when placed together in a community that reflects the light of Christ.Įach one of us is a piece in the kaleidoscope that is “the body of Christ”. What started out as random items, tossed and turned together in the framework of light-reflecting mirrors, became an intricately beautiful and balanced structure. Seemingly ordinary items became beautiful when placed together in the kaleidoscope and held up to the light. It had one end that was able to be opened so you could place whatever you wanted inside a red rubberband, a piece of quartz, a tiny pebble, an eyeglass screw anything small enough to fit. One of the best kaleidoscopes I’ve ever seen was a beautiful one made of wood. As it turned, the pieces moved and fell in an intricate dance sometimes lingering for a while, sometimes only touching for moments, then drifting away to connect with another piece in a magical puzzle that reflects even the smallest amount of light. I’ve spent many hours looking through a kaleidoscope over the years entertained and intrigued by the numerous (seemingly infinite) patterns created as I held it to the light and slowly turned.
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