Impacting image

Today was a rather, and unexpected, emotional day. I always look forward to corporate worship--and today's service was pretty powerful. One of the songs we sang this morning was I Can Only Imagine by Mercy Me. I have liked this song since before Mercy Me was on the radio all the time (thanks to a good friend). This was the first song I (as part of a team) danced to at Living Hope. Our pastor, Dave, loved this song, and it was played at his funeral. I used to cry every time I heard it after that, but haven't reacted that way in several years. Well, today, the buckets came. I don't know why, but I could hardly sing along. So, after church, I visited Living Hope for the first time since leaving. It was good to see everyone again, but I realized that I have transitioned to Trinity pretty well. This afternoon, I went to a funeral visitation to support the secretary at my school (her father passed away). After the visitation, I attened a graduation party for a girl I have watched grow up over the last eight years. It was hard to believe that she is old enough to graduate from high school. All in all, a pretty eventful day. But thinking about Dave this morning got me thinking about a lot of other things, too. Like how I really don't let people in. Like, the impact we have on those around us, whether we realize it or not. Am I having a positive, Christ-like impact on those I meet, or am I reflecting a poor image of Who He is? Through His grace, I know that I can reflect His true character.