Eyes to see

I don't know about you, but I need glasses. I cannot see more than a foot without them. The new fad is to get laser surgery to correct vision problems, but then you need reading glasses. My eyes are just getting old! I have been using them for a long time, and they are just tired and don't work as well as they used to, so I need glasses....

Once in a while I go over to see my friend, Bruce, and he checks my eyes to make sure I have the right prescription. Sometimes I have to go to a stronger lens. I always hate the first few days of a new pair of glasses because it's actually harder to see! My head hurts, and I have to adjust to the new clarity.

I saw this verse and wondered-

Ezek. 12:2 "Son of man, you live in the midst of the rebellious house, who have eyes to see but do not see, ears to hear but do not hear; for they are a rebellious house."

This verse is like many others in the bible that speak to a heart issue, a sin, that affects our vision. In this case Ezekiel is speaking to the nation of Israel in captivity and telling them, "you can't see because of your rebellious heart." In other words, sin blinds us.

I have a friend...a much older man than I...who asked me several years ago about divorcing his wife to marry another woman. They had been married for nearly 50 years! I told my friend that the only way he could make this choice was if he hardened his heart to God. He went ahead with his plan...divorced his wife of many years and married the other woman.

It's been several years now...I haven't seen him....then, out of the blue, he calls me to have lunch. It was good to see him again, but you could tell the two years had been hard on him. (Sin does that.) We had a nice lunch, visited, caught up....and then he said, "Mike, you were right. I made a horrible choice. It has affected everyone in my life, and the ripples reach further than I even dreamed. All I can do now is live my life for the Lord as best I can."

It was like going to Bruce for me...my vision was a little clearer. I knew these things from the word of God, but had not yet seen them worked out in a life as clearly as this. It was humbling for me. A man I dearly loved and cared for living with the results of his choices.

To be honest, that's why I spend so much time reading the Bible...it helps my vision....it keeps me tender...it helps me see what God wants. It reminds me that my rebellious, sinful heart is always ready to blur my vision if I let it.......