First impressions..

According to official statistics,  the number of online book sales has soared over the past year or so, although physical book sales have fallen. I love books, and although I usually take my e-reader on holiday I still prefer the look and feel of a real printed book.
What is it that attracts you to a book?The author, perhaps, or the title, or maybe just the look of the sleeve? Personally, I will probably take all three criteria into consideration. But the point is, until I’ve started to read (or even finished) my book it’s difficult to know whether I will enjoy it or not – and I have given up on a few.
So is that maybe how you tend to judge a book, by its title…by the cover?  If that’s the case, how do you judge people? By how they look, or perhaps by what they do? And do you sometimes change your mind once you’ve got to know them better? Or do you still base your opinion on your first impression?
I must admit I used to do that…’don’t like the look of him/her/them’. Being a naturally reserved type (officially!) I would just not engage with the person/s concerned, which has occasionally been embarrassing for whoever else I have been with. Well, let’s be honest, it was just downright rude. If we want to know what someone is really like, surely we have to give them a chance to prove – or disprove – our original thoughts and opinions. Just as we would with a book.
Jane Austen’s best known work is arguably ‘Pride and Prejudice’. However, its original title, rejected by her publisher, was ‘First Impressions’. Don’t judge someone by their first impression. Don’t be too proud or too prejudiced until you’ve looked a little more closely.
The Bible tells us that we are all made in God’s image. So when we look in a mirror, we see, not just ourselves, but God. The rock star Liam Gallagher, of all people, put it so well: ‘Every time I look in the mirror, God looks back’.
If that applies to us all, and God looks back at us, shouldn’t we at least give him a chance to prove himself, rather than simply looking away?                                                                       Revd Gary Williamson