Vision Correction

One of my cousins recently asked me: “How come you see things differently than other people?”

I vaguely murmured something about having different life experiences than others. I’ve been thinking more about his question since then…

I don’t think that any of us has perfect vision. Some can see close up; others can see better at a distance; some have good peripheral vision; others have cataracts; and a few are blind.

I’m reminded of the story about Saul’s blindness:

“So Ananias went and found Saul. He laid his hands on him and said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road, has sent me so that you might regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” Instantly something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he regained his sight.” (Acts 9:17-18 NLT)

 

We all have varying degrees of visual impairment. The Holy Spirit can use our experiences as corrective lenses to help us to see more clearly. Yet, like eyeglasses, we can choose to wear them or not. Even with corrected vision, we can only see things from an earthly perspective. This realization, that we can never see things from a divine viewpoint, compels us to never rely completely on our own understanding.