Snow White and Judgment Day

Do you remember the magic mirror in the story of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs? The wicked queen would look at herself and say, "Mirror, mirror on the wall, Who's the fairest of them all?" And the mirror would always answer, "You are!" Of course, that is exactly what the queen wanted to hear so she spent a considerable amount of time in front of it. But one day she asked that question and instead of hearing the words which soothed her soul, the mirror replied, "Snow White is the loveliest in the land." This was the truth, however, it was a truth the queen did not want to hear. But instead of going to a spa for some touch up work, the queen took after Snow White and you well know the rest of the story.

So what is the moral of this fable?

Don't ask questions of mirrors unless you are ready for an answer you don't like.

That might not be exactly what the Grimm brothers had in mind when they wrote Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, but it sure is a good way to get us thinking about Judgment Day.

Jesus talked a lot about Judgment Day and encouraged his followers to always be prepared for that day. If you have some time tonight, check out what he said in Matthew 25. Now you might wonder, "How do I know I'm ready?" Take a look in the mirror of your daily schedule and as you go through how you spend your time, ask yourself the question, "What does the way I use my time tell me about who is the Lord and Savior of my life?"

We all have 24 hours per day -- no more, no less. Having this set amount of time forces us to make choices on how we will spend it. And those choices are what tell us what is most important to us. Take a hard look at the way you've used each of the 24 hour periods you received from God since last Friday. If someone else went over your activities with you, what would lead them to identify you as a Christian?

The magic mirror in the Snow White story was actually pretty useless. But the mirror of our daily and weekly schedules can help us stay on the path to eternal life. It may hurt us to honestly look at the way we've used our time recently. But Jesus said that the truth, when it is based on his person and teachings, will set us free, even if it causes pain.

This Sunday (November 14 at 10:00 am), as we continue our study of the Apostles' Creed, we are going to see what the following statements mean to our lives:

He (Jesus) ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty.
From there he will come to judge the living and the dead.

These truths might not make us feel comfortable, but they will definitely help us to see what is most important in life so that when Judgment Day does come, we're ready.