There is a song by Helen Baylor called “Look A Little Closer”. The lyrics remind me that I am not the girl I used to be. My life has changed in more ways than one! Every time I look in the mirror the signs of time moving forward is written all over my face. Every time I exercise for an extended period, I experience the fact that my stamina is not as it once was. When I go into a room and forget why I have gone into that room and I giggle to myself I am reminded that my short-term memory is not as sharp as it once was. Yes, my life has changed. The years have gone by and at times it is bittersweet. To be honest there are some things that I would love to forget; never to remember anymore!
And before you think that this is a gloom and doom about getting older…it is not! It is about that new creature that I have become on the inside and I am in love with that woman! The new me may be older in years but I am so much wiser now! I may not be as young and vibrant on the outside as I used to be but inside there is a party going on that would blow your mind! I am evolving into the best me that I can be.
It is funny how some that have not seen me for a while automatically assume that I am the same person that I was years and years ago. I can only say what I am about to say because I know that it is only because of the impact of the ongoing relationship that I have with the One who changed me! You see He is the one who has enlarged my heart to love beyond what I ever thought I could. It is He who has given me greater grace to forgive and forgive quickly when I do not want to. It is Him who has enlarged my territory…I have been all around the world and it can never be said that I did not represent my Lord nor my country well! I am not perfect by any means, but I have changed, and I am changing every day. But isn’t that His will for me? Isn’t it His will that I go from glory to ever increasing glory and from faith to faith? Isn’t it His will that I be conformed to the image of His Son? I am learning just what that looks like.
So, the next time you look in the mirror don’t just do a surface scan. Look a little closer…what do you see?
Look A Little Closer
Helen Baylor
I met an old friend today
In the café on the hill
To see him after all these years
Somehow did not seem strange.
We laughed and reminisced about
The life we used to live.
And I could tell at least with him
That nothing much had changed.
An invitation to the party
Was all he had to offer.
‘Everyone will be there
And all the high you need is free.
As he checked the time, and he paid the check
He said ‘we ought to hurry.’
And I could tell the one he was talking to
Was the old me.
And I said Look a little closer.
(Look closer)
Can’t you see that I have changed?
(Ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh)
I am not the girl I used to be
My life is rearranged.
Look a little closer.
(Look closer)
I’m not the one I use to be.
(Ooh-ooh-ooh)
I gave my heart to Jesus
And He gave a brand-new life to me…
