One of my greatest desires over the years has been to see people the way God sees them. Over the last 13 years, I can't begin to remember how much of my time with the Lord has been spent asking Him to teach me to see as He sees. I don't want to see from my perspective, I want to see people like Jesus does. I want to see from the eyes of the heart, through the eyes of Love!
This desire became so strong in my heart, one year, I went on an unusual fast. Instead of fasting food, as is often customary, I fasted sunglasses. I fasted wearing sunglasses for one year. I know what you're probably thinking...that sounds crazy! What in the world does that have to do with anything. But, I was so desperate to see myself, others, and the world around me through Jesus' eyes that I fasted sunglasses symbolically. I didn't want anything of self to taint my vision from seeing like Jesus sees, so as a representation, I didn't want anything, like sunglasses, to shadow or taint my vision. Fasting from sunglasses did nothing to change my way of seeing people. But, it acted as a constant reminder not to allow any measure of self, or the ways of the world to be a lens over how I saw others.
One night during a time drawing near to the Lord in prayer I saw an answer to much of these prayers over the years. I saw myself walking with Jesus through the streets of Ethiopia, which is where we were living at the time. Suddenly, we stopped. Right in front of us was a woman covered in drab cloth. She was crouched down as if sitting in place on the street where she could beg for provision. This was not an unusual sight on the streets of Ethiopia. However, the woman in this vision was not like anyone I often saw on the streets. Though she was covered with cloth that revealed her poverty, underneath that poverty and through its cracks glowed a light from within her that was trying to escape, a light that was trying to be seen!
Have you ever gone into a dark room and put a glowing flashlight underneath your enclosed fist? The darkness of your flesh tries to cover the light that's inside. But that light is so much more powerful, and is fighting to break out of any and every crevice possible! It just needs to be brought out beyond the surface. That is the light that Jesus sees in us all. Though our flesh may try and cover what is on the inside, God has created us all to be Sons & Daughters of the King, who are created in His image. His light is within us and is always trying to break free. That light is in EVERYONE we pass by each day.
We may just see the outside, the flesh that is trying to smother the masterpiece God has within each person, but Jesus sees, loves, and brings forward the light from the inside to the outside, until it overpowers the smothering hand. To see as Jesus sees, He wants us to see beyond the hand, beyond the flesh. Jesus wants us to see the light that is buried inside, the light that is trying to break free through every crack of the flesh. When we see as He sees not only will we begin to focus on that light instead of on the flesh, but we will learn how to extract that light for the whole world to see. We won't see people as the hand over the flashlight, but we will see them as the light ready to break free!
That was the impoverished woman in this vision with the Lord. Despite all her poverty and all the worldly drabness that tried to taint the splendid creation that she was, Jesus was pointing to the light inside, the light that was working to overpower her poverty and worldly circumstance. He wanted me to see what was hidden so I could be a part of extracting the treasure that He had buried inside.
What hidden light, or gem might be found in your path today? How can we give life to that light?
In Him,
Joey
This desire became so strong in my heart, one year, I went on an unusual fast. Instead of fasting food, as is often customary, I fasted sunglasses. I fasted wearing sunglasses for one year. I know what you're probably thinking...that sounds crazy! What in the world does that have to do with anything. But, I was so desperate to see myself, others, and the world around me through Jesus' eyes that I fasted sunglasses symbolically. I didn't want anything of self to taint my vision from seeing like Jesus sees, so as a representation, I didn't want anything, like sunglasses, to shadow or taint my vision. Fasting from sunglasses did nothing to change my way of seeing people. But, it acted as a constant reminder not to allow any measure of self, or the ways of the world to be a lens over how I saw others.
One night during a time drawing near to the Lord in prayer I saw an answer to much of these prayers over the years. I saw myself walking with Jesus through the streets of Ethiopia, which is where we were living at the time. Suddenly, we stopped. Right in front of us was a woman covered in drab cloth. She was crouched down as if sitting in place on the street where she could beg for provision. This was not an unusual sight on the streets of Ethiopia. However, the woman in this vision was not like anyone I often saw on the streets. Though she was covered with cloth that revealed her poverty, underneath that poverty and through its cracks glowed a light from within her that was trying to escape, a light that was trying to be seen!
Have you ever gone into a dark room and put a glowing flashlight underneath your enclosed fist? The darkness of your flesh tries to cover the light that's inside. But that light is so much more powerful, and is fighting to break out of any and every crevice possible! It just needs to be brought out beyond the surface. That is the light that Jesus sees in us all. Though our flesh may try and cover what is on the inside, God has created us all to be Sons & Daughters of the King, who are created in His image. His light is within us and is always trying to break free. That light is in EVERYONE we pass by each day.
We may just see the outside, the flesh that is trying to smother the masterpiece God has within each person, but Jesus sees, loves, and brings forward the light from the inside to the outside, until it overpowers the smothering hand. To see as Jesus sees, He wants us to see beyond the hand, beyond the flesh. Jesus wants us to see the light that is buried inside, the light that is trying to break free through every crack of the flesh. When we see as He sees not only will we begin to focus on that light instead of on the flesh, but we will learn how to extract that light for the whole world to see. We won't see people as the hand over the flashlight, but we will see them as the light ready to break free!
That was the impoverished woman in this vision with the Lord. Despite all her poverty and all the worldly drabness that tried to taint the splendid creation that she was, Jesus was pointing to the light inside, the light that was working to overpower her poverty and worldly circumstance. He wanted me to see what was hidden so I could be a part of extracting the treasure that He had buried inside.
What hidden light, or gem might be found in your path today? How can we give life to that light?
In Him,
Joey
