Seeing as God sees
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During this Lenten Season, many of the stories in Scripture emphasize the power of sight. The story of the man born blind in the Gospel passage from John is wellknown to many of us.
And the lesson we can learn from this rich story and its imagery is one that we have heard many times — that part of living a life in God involves allowing him to draw us from darkness into light. And so as we journey through Lent, we reflect on those things that keep us in the dark, and invite our loving and merciful God to shine his light into every corner of our lives, our souls, our minds, our hearts.
But going from blindness to sight is only “part” of living a life in God — because the image is incomplete. And that additional understanding that I believe is helpful can be found in the First Book of Samuel. God asks Samuel to choose and anoint a king from among the sons of Jesse.
God tells him not to judge from his appears because “not as man sees does God see.” Jesse presents his seven eldest sons to Samuel first. That makes perfect sense. Surely Samuel would want to choose one of them. And yet Samuel realizes that the future king is not among them. Samuel asks if there are any others. Jesse then calls in his youngest son, David, who is tending the sheep. God tells Samuel that he is to anoint David, that he is the one. In a certain sense, God allows Samuel to see in David what he himself sees.
While the Gospel reading reveals the importance of allowing our loving God to open our eyes and rescue us from a life of darkness, this reading makes clear that following God involves not just seeing — but seeing in a particular way — seeing as God sees. And when we are able to see as God sees, when we let God be both the light and the lens through which we view the world, it will almost certainly completely change how we experience everything in this life. It will completely shape our encounters with each and every person and every circumstance. In this sense, a holy life is one in which we allow God to illuminate our lives as he sees fit — in order that we may more perfectly imitate his Son in all that we say and in all that we do.
From this day forward, may we pledge to no longer go through life in darkness. Let’s allow our God to open our eyes and flood our hearts and minds with his light. And when we have to make difficult choices in life regarding others or complicated situations, let’s not simply give a quick and shallow glance and make a convenient decision based on our best interest or what feeds our individual wants or prejudices.
Rather, when those situations arise, let’s pause in those moments and honestly and sincerely ask ourselves, “If God were viewing this person or this situation, what would he see? ... what does he see?” And then, may we have the courage to embrace the answer we receive.