Giving Up Our Mirrors

They made the bronze basin and its bronze stand from the mirrors of the women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting.

Exodus 38:8

This isn't a passage of Scripture that you are likely to read. It's buried well into a sixteen-chapter section of Exodus that deals almost exclusively with the minutia of the tabernacle including lengthy discussions on the dimensions and details of the tent, its posts, its coverings, and all its furnishings and their utensils. In fact, the only reason you would likely come across is if you are working through a Bible reading plan that requires you to read the entire Bible. Yet, I always find that the Spirit mines treasures out of the depths of Scripture when I really dig into it. And that proves true here. 

The Israelites had taken up a love offering to gather all the materials they would need to construct their place of worship in keeping with the Lord's command. In this section of Scripture, we find how much gold they collected, how much silver, how much bronze, and all the other necessary materials as well. But no other individual or group is specifically credited for their gift like these women are. Why? What made their gift worthy of special mention?

First, it was a costly gift. A mirror would have been a prized possession for women living in a desert. It's not like there was a lot of pools of water around that they could see their reflection in! Assuming that they didn't have multiple mirrors, it meant that they would be considerably less able to manage and check their appearance. Can you imagine the possibility of living completely without mirrors for the rest of your life? So, it cost them something to give away this comfort and this control. It is also entirely possible that the only valuables these women owned were their jewelry and these mirrors. Without the ability to work and make money, this was a financially costly gift as well. 

Second, it was a wise gift. Many of the pagan religions of the day encouraged worshipers to engage in sexual acts with temple prostitutes as an expression of worship for these false gods. It isn't hard to imagine how people could get the wrong idea about these women who were standing at the entrance to the tabernacle, especially if they were beautifully dressed and attractively groomed. By giving their mirrors to the Lord, these women were committing to avoid allowing their presence at the tabernacle turn into something unholy. 

For you and I this should be a powerful reminder that requires expression. When we love someone, we do big and difficult things to express that love to them. And somehow by the act we remind ourselves again of just how much we do love them. When was the last time you gave an offering to the Lord that was actually costly for you to give? When was the last time you gave until it hurt? Maybe it's time for you to give a love offering to the Lord. If so, consider giving something or fasting from something that would also serve to safeguard you from some sin or excess in your life.