Does your smile reach your eyes?

TODAY’S PROVERB: Bright eyes bring joy to the heart. Good news gives health to the bones. Proverbs 15:30

“The eyes are the window to the soul.”

Have you ever seen a smile that didn’t reach the eyes? Those orbs just didn’t reflect joy, but something else?

According to Psychology Today, the eyes tell us the emotional state of a person. Worried or sad people furrow their brows which makes the eyes look smaller.

Cheerful people raise their eyebrows making their eyes appear bigger and brighter.

There’s another physical aspect to our eye’s appearance and that is our heart rate. Whether from joy, fear, interest, or other emotional engagement, our pupils will dilate. Which also can make our eyes appear larger.

So, we can fake a smile, even raise our eyebrows in an attempt to raise the smile to our eyes, but we can’t dilate our pupils. What is in our heart will be reflected, literally, in our eyes.

I am one of those people who wears their emotions on their face, especially my eyes. If things are not well with my soul, you’ll see it plainly. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It does mean I’m more transparent than I sometimes what to be however. The alternative is to wear a mask and I’ve come too far to go back to that.

Still, I want the Good News to reflect in my eyes and my behavior.

I know people that bring joy with them wherever they go. Their eyes are bright with awe and wonder. Their words are positive and hopeful.

Even though many of these precious people have been through the fires of tribulation and pain, it has only made them shine brighter. Their faith is anchored and stable, even in the most bitter of storms.

Those are the people I want to emulate. How about you?

May our eyes reflect the joy in our hearts, my friends.

Proverbs 15:30 Tree of Life Bible Society, Tree of Life Version – TLV, #tlvbible, #tlvproverbs