I have been pondering this quote lately:

What is the test that you have indeed undergone this holy birth?

Listen carefully.

If this birth has truly taken place within you, then every single creature points you toward God.

(Meister Eckhart, 1260-1328)

This is different than how Christians of late have been instructed to test if they have been born afresh into God's Kingdom.

Too often, the test has to do with praying or not praying a specific kind of prayer.

But what if Eckhart's test is more accurate?

What if the test of whether or not some sort of divine transformation has happened in the human spirit is not about what words have come out of one's mouth, but about how one's entire way of seeing the world and everything in it has been transformed?

Let's think together for a moment, shall we? How do we see other creatures in this world?

When we see animals, insects, birds, fish, what do we think? How do we see them?

When we look at other human beings what do we see? Differences? Threat?

Do we divide people into categories based on all kinds of distinguishing features or beliefs?

Do we see your neighbor as saved/unsaved, found/lost, in/out?

Or do we see the image, the very fingerprint of God, the DNA of the divine?

We don't have to pray a specific prayer in order to see people in new ways.

But we do need some help from above.

Lord, may my spirit be born again in such a way that every creature I encounter today points me to You.

May I see every living being as a signpost of your presence, creativity, goodness and power.

May I see my neighbor and worship You.

May this be so.

Amen.