Look around you. If anyone else is within view, look at them. Don’t just glance and then turn your eyes quickly, afraid they may see you staring. Look at them.
Study their face.
Notice the depth of their eyes. Are they crowned with thin or thick brows? Are the lashes curled up reaching to those brows or are they swept out waving to the world? What color are those eyes? Are they shaped like almonds? Can you get lost in them or do they make you want to look away? How much space is between the brows and the hairline above? Maybe there is no hairline. Is the skin above and between the brows smooth or do you see lines?
Look at the nose and cheeks. Is the nose long or short? Thick or thin? Nostrils elongated or round? Do the cheeks push into the nose creating seams or is the transition smooth and seamless? Are the cheeks round or sharp? High or low? Do they extend wide to the ears or are they narrow on a small face? Is there a hollow space just below the cheekbone? If the person you are observing is a baby, do they make you want to touch them?
Observe the lips. Pouty? Sad? Smiling? Pleased? Serious? Stressed? Opened or closed? Thin slivers parting the mouth or full? Do they sit upon a dimpled chin? Are there two peaks on the top lip?
What else did you notice? Maybe the ears? Or the hair? Or no hair? What about the color? Was it a rich, deep shade or more pale?
There is more to notice. Not just the physical. But to look that closely may be awkward.
Do it anyway.
What do you see? No, I don’t want you to go engage in a conversation. Unless, of course, it is too late. And if you do tread lightly. Let them know you were observing the features of their face. Behold the creation God made in His image.
If there is no conversation, consider under the skin, behind the eyes, breathed deep in through the nose, spoken into existence, is a creation, formed by God, in the most secret place. This creation has mind, heart, soul, and body. This creation has known happiness and hurt. Does one show more than the other?
Allow your heart to soften for them. Direct your thoughts to pray for them.
If you know them and they have hurt you, will you forgive them? Can you look at them as a creation of God, formed in His image, and consider the gift He has given you in Christ, and seek the very same gift for them?
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