Don't Get Fooled By Looks by Dr. Sinclair Grey III

Editor's Note: This article is written by Dr. Sinclair Grey III, Senior Pastor, The Liberation Temple, a non-denominational Christian Church in Mt. Rainier, Maryland.
An inspirational speaker, motivator, author, organizer and “liberator of persons from all intellectual, social and cultural walks of life”, Dr. Sinclair Grey III is a committed advocate for communal change.  NewLifeTodayBlog.com publishes Dr. Sinclair Grey III's writings every Thursday.

Dr, Sinclair Grey III
Senior Pastor
Liberation Temple

Have you ever met someone who seemed perfect on the outside, but flawed on the inside? In other words, they appeared to have it going on, but they were messed up from the floor up. Looks can be deceiving. What looks fine on the outside can be a decoy to the real issues on the inside. Many people will dress up, look good, and perpetrate a fraud when they have issues, challenges, and problems. All of us have stuff going on in our life, but the real problem is when we deny our problems and act as though we're perfect.
In this life, I've discovered that people get fooled everyday by what they see on the outside. That's right; the appearance of a person can make it seem as though they have it all together, however, when many of these people retire from a full day, tears fall down their face. They contemplate their loneliness. In a real sense, they may even question their own self-esteem and self-identity. There values stem from things and people. Please don't miss this. When you judge yourself by the standards of people or things, you lower your value. Your value isn't in the latest fashion. It's not in being popular. And it's not in your socio-economic status. Your value is in being a child of God and doing His will.

In this spiritual journey, you must move beyond the surface of an individual to get to the core. Let me say it this way. Ask the person about their goals and aspirations? Ask them about their faith and how important is their faith? Ask them about their values, morals, and principles? Please don't get so caught up with how a person looks on the outside that you fail to adhere to what's important to you as an individual. Yes, looks are important, but looks should never dominate what you want out of life. Check this out - when you're so focused on a person's looks, you'll lose sight and fall on your face. How so? Because you'll allow what you'll see in the natural to overrule what God wants you to see in the spiritual.

In the Bible, when Samuel was looking for the next King of Israel, he spotted a handsome man from the house of Jesse and thought to himself that he (Eliab) was the one. However, God intervened with these words, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looksat. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at theheart." That's my word for you. Before you get so excited about a how a person looks, spend some time looking at their heart and character. As my mentor would say, 'the heart and character will reveal true beauty.' Here's the Sinclair remix. Don't get fooled by a person's looks because inner beauty will always win out in the long run.

Scripture of the Day:  "Righteousness guards the man of integrity, but wickedness overthrows the sinner." (Proverbs 13:6 -NIV)