Open my eyes:

Christine (Tina) Berglund

   Of all the daylilies in the garden, the prettiest are the ones that appear to have eyes!

   In a few days,I’ll be having a procedure done in an attemptto heal my eyes. If some of the biblical scholars are right, Paul suffered from eye troubles; and I would have to agree that eye pain is truly a “thorn in the flesh.” It is not only painful, but it is terribly inconvenient.

   One place that eye pain isn’t so noticeable is in the garden. The eye doctors explain that it is because of the combination of near and far vision, and the extra moisture of our humid outdoor climate. The relaxing nature of the tasks that cause normal blinking action could also help.

   My theory is that there is so much that is pleasing to the eyes that it just feels better!I guess you could say that a garden is literally “a sight for sore eyes.”

   Revelation 3:18 admonishes the church in Laodicea to “anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see” (NKJV). The odd thing was, Laodicea was a city known for its eye salve! This play on words showed the Laodiceans that they didn’t really see as well as they thought.

   We sing the children’s song, “Be Careful Little Eyes What You See,” but maybe we miss the point. We are concerned, and rightly so, of guarding our eyes against the things we should not see.

“I will set no worthless thing before my eyes” (Psalm 101:3, NASB).

   We post sticky notes of this or similar verses on our televisions. We put filters on our computers so that pornography doesn’t pop up and assault our eyes, nor our children’s eyes.

But what do we TRY to see?

   Do we see the good in people, especially those with whom we don’t get along? Do we see the best in humanity, even when it’s almost invisible? The famous children’s television personality, Fred Rogers, recalls the advice of his mother whenever a terrible tragedy strikes. “Look for the helpers.”

   The key is to “look.” If we don’t make the attempt to look for it, immeasurable good and so much beauty will be overlooked!

Did you see your 3-year-old sharing his last cookie with his brother? Did you see the young mother smiling through the hymns Sunday morning as she wrestled her toddlers and quieted them with a prepared snack or book? Did you see the older man shuffle over to the table where the correspondence courses are kept, so he could send the next one to his eager student on another continent?

   Yes, there are beautiful moments that surround us in the garden of our everyday lives. God’s protection surrounds us, too; although we cannot see it with our human eyes. Elisha’s servant had to be shown.

   “Now when the attendant of the man of God had risen early and gone out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was circling the city. And his servant said to him, ‘Alas, my master! What shall we do?’ So he answered, ‘Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.’ Then Elisha prayed and said, ‘O Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.’ And the Lord opened the servant’s eyes and he saw; and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha” (2 Kings 6:15-17, NASB).

Our eyes are so very important to us, but we must not only see, but also LOOK.