I went to the eye doctor yesterday. It was my third visit in the last couple of months.
At my initial visit she gave me a pair of contacts to try, but they didn’t work. My backyard garden looked fuzzy from the kitchen window, and I had to squint sometimes when I was working on my computer.
At the second visit, she tried a different brand. I wasn’t happy with those either. Still a little fuzzy for distance, still a little squinty for reading.
During yesterday’s visit, she seemed perplexed about my problem. I was afraid I was going to have to go to glasses, but she tried one more thing, and I could see a noticeable difference. I left with (hopefully) my final set of sample contacts. If they continue to work, I’ll be set for this year.
Before I left, I thanked her for being patient with me. I was glad she had stuck with it until I could see clearly. I was also glad that I had gone back one more time instead of living with slightly blurry eyesight.
I think life works that way, too.
We get frustrated because we can’t see things clearly.
We can’t figure out how to look at the coronavirus, race relations, politics, and gender identity. They seem far away and blurry. For other people those things seem so clear. What are they seeing that we can’t?
So we decide to look at the things close to us instead. That should be simpler, right? But our job, our marriage, our relationship with our children, our friendships, and our daily schedules all seem out of focus, too. What is wrong with us? Should we just live with our unclear ideas about the world (far and near)?
We need to keep going back to the Lord so we can eventually see things the way he does. He’ll give us a prescription—through the Bible and the work of the Holy Spirit—that will help us perceive just how we need to see everything in our lives.
I know there are things we won’t understand completely until we get to heaven someday, but we can focus on the things that are clear right now: Love God, love others, make good use of the time you’ve been given on this planet, and never give up hope (not an exhaustive list, of course).
Don’t settle for squinting your way through life. Keep going back to God and he’ll help you improve your vision. Someday you’ll see things exactly like he does.
“We don’t yet see things clearly. We’re squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won’t be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We’ll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us!” (1 Corinthians 13:12 The Message)
How is your eyesight? Are you upset because so many things seem unclear? How can focusing on God help you to see things more clearly?