There is an ancient Greek myth of a hunter named Narcissus. He was known to be quite beautiful but also quite proud of his own beauty. He was in love with himself.
One day the god of vengeance and retribution, named Nemesis, saw a weakness in Narcissus' pride and self-centeredness and drew him to a body of water. Upon seeing his reflection in the water, Narcissus was drawn further and further in, unable to turn away from his desire for his own beauty, until he eventually drowned in his love for himself.
As you may have guessed, this myth paints for us a picture of narcissism - an over-concern for oneself, ultimately at the cost of ignoring others.
How often are we the cause of our own burdens? If we only look in mirrors to see what we like we do harm. But mirrors can also be quite helpful. If we can get over ourselves, then looking in mirrors helps us examine ourselves and takes account of the wrinkles and scars that have slowly crept into our lives. In the Christian practice of examination, we see our sins and faults.
The closer we hold the mirror to ourselves then the more we will see the small, surprising faults in our lives. And the further away we hold the mirror we will begin to not only see the whole picture of our lives, but we will see our life reflected among other people's lives as well. True examination and self-reflection moves us beyond ourselves.
To counter the Greek myth I am drawn to this proverb in the Bible, "Anyone who listens to the Word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it - he will be blessed in what he does." (James 1:23-25).
Good reflection is what frees us from narcissism because it directs us to ask for forgiveness and keeps pushing us to become new creations in Christ and grow more and more into the likeness of him.
Our nemesis is a prideful attitude that tells us there is nothing wrong with us. Take a few extra minutes this weekend to look in the mirror, taking account of yourself and your life as it is reflected in the larger picture of your family and community.
And as you look at yourself, remember that it is not what you have done or what you look like that makes you good. But it is the grace of Christ Jesus that makes us beautiful in the eyes of God. Because if we believe in him and claim him as our Saviour, then as he looks at us he no longer sees our sins, but he sees his Son. It is his grace that saves us from drowning, and be frees us to reflect what is good in life.
