BEHOLD!

Here in South Florida many homes have a sliding glass door leading from the interior of the home to a screened-in lanai. The other night, my husband invited me to sit with him in the lanai. Though it was a beautiful evening, I am not the best at being still and quiet. And I could see into the living room that Jeopardy was about to start. So after what I thought was a sufficient amount of time, gracing him with my presence, I abruptly got up and proceeded into the living room. The only problem was that the sliding glass door was not open as I had thought, and I proceeded to walk briskly right into it. The result could have been worse. No black eye. Just a fat upper lip and a bruised nose. And a dose of embarrassment.

Now that my lip is finally less puffy, I am thinking that my encounter with thick glass is surely a metaphor of some kind. At the very least, it’s a reminder to slow down, reflect, be in the present, and think of others before myself.

This jarring brings to mind a particular word used over 1,500 times in the Bible. BEHOLD. It is used in both the Old and New Testaments by prophets and angels and even God himself. The word could be translated as a warning to be alert, to watch. Something is about to happen; therefore, listen, be attentive, and above all, slow down.

John the Baptist used this word when he first saw Jesus approaching. “Behold, the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” The angel Gabriel used this word when telling Mary that the impossible was about to happen. In the book of Revelation, Jesus says, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice, and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.”

And in the last chapter of Matthew, Jesus tells his disciples these final words of great comfort, “Behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

So here are my Behold’s for us.

Behold, the Lord, the ruler of heaven and earth, omnipotent and perfect and holy, is Immanuel. He is with us now and forever.

Behold, this very God stands at the door of our hearts and says, “Behold, I will not force it open. But if you choose to open it, just a crack, together, we will feast on my goodness and power.”

And to me, he says,

“Behold, a game show on TV (where maybe you might know two of the answers – and you certainly won’t phrase them in the form of a question) should not compete with time under my stars.

You who are always on the move, going who knows where, a slave to a to-do list that never gets done….

Behold, a sliding glass door.”