New Lenses…

Once a month I get to put in new lenses. This journey has been a long one. When I was turning 40, I started noticing a squint. It took more effort to read the small print, and, being a nurse, the small print was rather important. This led to a visit to the optometrist, a medical specialist that I had not needed my entire life. This led to multiple pairs of prescription reading glasses being purchased and lost, because I never needed them before and could never remember where I used them last. (Many of those times they were on the top of my head.)

A kind eye doctor told me I could try contact lenses, and that was, quite frankly, one of the happiest moments of my growing-older life! I took him up on that, and now, around 20 years later, I still love them. I do however have to use the over-the-counter reading glasses for the small stuff, but with a pair in every room of the house and one to three pairs in my purse, I’m good.

As the month wears on, my eyes get tired. They notice the buildup of proteins and other “eye junk” that accumulates over the month’s wear, and it is time for a new, clean pair. Wow! They feel so good in my eyes, and I can see so much clearer with less eye effort. I wish I could put in a new pair every single day. But that’s not practical, let alone affordable.

This gets me thinking about my Spirit vision. What kind of junk builds up when I do not ask the Holy Spirit to open the eyes of my soul and see what I need to get rid of, the junk that I allow to rub off on me from the world. The times when I look at those magazines at the checkout and believe that I need to try that new latest, greatest product that may just be a waste of good, hard-earned money. Or how about that relationship advice? Should I just tell my husband to shape up or ship out? Eyes that are so distracted and fogged up by the world that I can actually overlook another hurting soul that could really use some encouragement. 

I need some time with Him. We do not see or should not see like the world does. “For we walk by faith, not by sight.” (2 Corinthians 5:7) The Apostle Paul is telling us that what we physically see is not what carries the most importance. Without processing what we see through the lens of faith, we get the wrong picture.

To clear the lenses of our soul, we need Holy Spirit help. The God part that comes in to us, resides in us as Christians. We need to daily say to Him, “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength and my redeemer.” (Psalm 19:14)

This kind of self-reflection doesn’t come naturally. Only super-naturally. Just because Jesus lives in us through His Holy Spirit, doesn’t mean we always listen to Him. Just like we don’t very often pay attention to the organs of our bodies when they would like to tell us, “hey, don’t eat that, it’s not good for me” we can go deaf to the Spirit if we do not take the time to clear our thoughts and open the door to Him.

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock, if any man hear my voice and open the door, I will come in and sup with him and he with me.” (Revelation 3:20) He will meet us there in our “prayer closets,” and the cleaning and the clearing can begin. Our sight becomes His sight, which is better than 20/20.