Apparently many children who get glasses have a similar experience. You assume that everyone sees the world like you, then you get glasses and can suddenly perceive things you didn't think were possible. I remember riding in the car home from the optometrist at the age of 10-ish and calling out all the details I never noticed in the world around me. The individual blades of grass on the ground and every small twig hanging in the trees... they were things that everyone else took for granted but I couldn't imagine. Because my vision was obscured, I was blinded to beauty that surrounded me every day.
Our spiritual vision can be clouded by all sorts of things. Selfishness, insecurities, temptations... the world never ceases to amaze us with new and ingenious ways of hiding the beauty of God's creation.
When we think of obscured vision, many of us may naturally go to a famous excerpt about things getting in the way of our own sight...
3 Why do you look at the splinter in your brother’s eye but don’t notice the beam of wood in your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the splinter out of your eye,’ and look, there’s a beam of wood in your own eye? 5 Hypocrite! First take the beam of wood out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to take the splinter out of your brother’s eye. (Matthew 7:3-5)
Most of us read this and take away the lesson that we shouldn't be hypocrites or judge others. These are good lessons to take. What I find more interesting is the "so what" contained in verse 5...
Hypocrite! First take the beam of wood out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to take the splinter out of your brother’s eye. (Matthew 7:5)
The idea that "not judging" is the end of the lesson misses a huge point. The objective of removing things which obscure our spiritual and moral vision is so that we can more clearly see to aid those around us. So, what obscures our vision? How about when we get so engrossed in a hobby or career choice that we start to forget the emotional needs of our loved ones at home? How about when we struggle so mightily with pride that we can't see how others God has called to lead may need our help? How about when we get so wrapped up in our own woes and troubles that we forget to consider the needs around us? There are thousands (or more) ways in which we get engrossed by "us" and end up neglecting others God has placed in our lives. Identifying what keeps us from seeing the hurt, the pain, and the need which surrounds us each day is step number 1.
After we identify what obscures our vision, we have to learn to look past it. When I was a child, my eyesight was corrected by the use of glasses and contact lenses. Spiritually, we also possess corrective lenses... most importantly the Holy Spirit which helps us to see things which we can not normally see. These "unseen things" are opportunities we have to share love with someone who doesn't feel loved. It is an opportunity to build someone up who may be feeling down. It is an opportunity to share the good news of Christ with someone who may not see any potential source of hope.
The way we "use our corrective lenses" is by getting more in-tune with the spirit God has placed inside us. Spend time in prayer. Meditate on your life and God's calling. Listen to what the scriptures have to tell you. All your favorite "Sunday school answers" to life's problems serve a purpose and that's what we see here. So I ask you... are you seeing clearly? Do you have a hard time seeing more than your own life or are you allowing the Holy Spirit to help you see your brothers and sisters who surround you each and every day?
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