What Are You Projecting?

What Are You Projecting?

Back in the day, when those of us of a certain age, were young, and shared the world with our pet dinosaurs, lots of things were different. For example, picture-taking was accomplished with a boxy Brownie camera, with actual film you had to load yourself.  There was no deleting and starting again, the resulting image was what it was.  My Dad often used slide film.  I think it was cheaper, and instead of making prints, you wound up with little white cardboard squares with an itty bitty celluloid picture inside.  You could hold them up to the light, but to see the picture in all its Kodachrome glory, the slides needed to be placed in a projector.  I loved getting those slide trays out, and projecting the tiny squares onto a screen, or in our case, a sheet hung on the wall.  What was only a miniscule piece of plastic, soon blossomed into big glorious life with vivid colors, and breathtaking depth.

Our lives, not unlike those slides, hold all kinds of pictures.  Our joys, sorrows, frustrations, every good or bad life experience is recorded and stored away in mental trays. How often, and which slides, do you bring out for the world to view? Often we choose the irritating images to enlarge.  Maybe you have a gripe with your spouse, friend, job or church; boom, up on the screen they go. Sure it may feel good to unburden ourselves, but what do these negative pictures really project about us as Christians?  In a commentary I read once, the author stated that “the slides” of our lives should be so appealing, winsome even, that people are drawn to our screens.

I’m sure Jesus had plenty of shots in his tray that were less than attractive, but he chose to project the ones that would draw the world to his screen, and keep them there.  What tiny pictures are you making big?  Are you projecting the way Jesus does, or are people searching to find the exit as soon as your “show“ begins?  Think about it before you start projecting.  “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about, (and project) such things. Philippians 4:8