Hidden shades

One summer I signed up to do a small weight loss challenge at the YMCA. If I could lose a certain amount of weight in six weeks I was promised a prize( and I like prizes!). I worked as diligently as I could though I must admit that a few desserts managed to make their way across my plate. In the end I did lose the amount of weight I had set as my goal and eagerly went to claim my prize. I was thoroughly disappointed to learn that it was a pair of sunglasses and not pretty ones either! They were rather large and white in appearance with, of course, the YMCA clearly stamped on the side. I took one look at them and promptly put them in my car forgetting all about them. But as it happened,  I misplaced my usual pair of sunglasses and was forced to use this somewhat ugly pair...much to my dismay. While I was wearing them, however, something interesting took place....they changed colors on me!! These ordinary looking, fairly large glasses that were white in color suddenly turned a beautiful light shade of purple. I could not have been more surprised and quite pleasantly I might add. It took me several moments to realize that these glasses changed colors when exposed to sunlight. I was stunned and I couldn't help but think of how this was similar to so many people I have met in my life.
Often we are guilty of judging others for what they look like and how they behave. Just like these glasses there are multiple times when we give someone the once over, make up our minds that they are not worth the effort and toss them aside. I have seen this happen many times and been guilty of doing this myself more than I care to admit. They may be socially awkward, or very quite or seem disinterested in the world around them. But those pair of sunglasses left an impression on me, one that I cannot shake and left me with a question.
What would happen if some of these people, the ones that may be a little socially awkward, or struggle to fit in because they are more of an introvert, would receive a little bit of sunshine? When my common sunglasses were exposed to some rays from the sun they turned into a beautiful pair of glasses that I wasn't embarrassed to wear. Almost reminds you of the ugly duckling doesn't it? You see, when we meet someone for the first time and they don't meet with our particular standards of what a person is suppose to be, we tend to write them off and move on. We don't even give them a chance to fit in or forget to see the potential in them, the potential God has for them. But what would happen if we chose to shine a little sun their way instead? Would they change colors and be something we never realized they could? Would they be able to achieve all that God has for them? Sometimes all that is needed is a little bit of encouragement.
God calls us to love others and to be the salt and Light of the world. We are called to make a difference in the lives of others, to be sunshine in a world that is dark. In many ways we all are similar to those strange glasses. We are born in sin, and destined for an ugly life until God shines upon us and transforms us. Because of this we are able to become what He really intended for us to be. But here is a thought, didn't we need someone to shine a little light our way before the transformation could take place? I know that my mom faithfully shined the light of God's Word into my life, leading me to a saving knowledge of God and there were others whom He used to help me grow. What I am saying is, could we be the rays God is looking for to change someone from a drab white pair of sunglasses into a vibrant shade of purple?
This may sound like a strange example but to be honest this has stayed with me for several years. Every time I see those glasses in my car I think back to the day when they went from ordinary to extraordinary. So many people walk around, including in our churches, thinking they are just ordinary people with little to no purpose in life until someone sheds a little light their way and they begin to slowly change colors.
​I am called to be an encouragement, to provoke others to good works, to bring out the best in others. I want to fulfill that calling and be the one who helps another reach their full potential, to help them realize that God created them with a purpose, one that the world desperately needs to have completed. What about you? Do you know someone in need of a little burst of sunshine to help draw out that hidden color?