Blurred Eyes

Blurred Eyes

4/3/13

Being able to see is one of the more important senses that a human can have to guide us through our daily lives.  But with seeing being a human factor we all know that eyesight can become an option in our lives rather than a guarantee.  Blurred vision does not always mean that a person cannot see and there are many reasons as to why our vision can be blurred, but even in this condition, we can continue our journey in life and find the one true correction that will allow us to reach our mission in life.

Many of you that know me and have spent time with me will remember that I wear glasses.  Some of you have heard the story of how I came to wear glasses and I am sure that each one of you who have corrective lenses will have a similar story to mine.  If you are blessed with perfect eyesight be thankful and enjoy your freedom in being able to see clearly but remember to still protect your eyes at all times for they too can be subject to blurred vision.

Over the decades of my life, my eyesight has continued to degrade a little at a time.  With the technology that is available now I could have a simple operation on my eyes to where I would not have to wear any type of corrective lenses but I still cannot seem to trust anyone with the permanent vision of my eyes, especially if one miscalculation could lead to blindness which could not be reversed, so I continue with my contacts and glasses as supplements and continue towards my calling in life.

When I first began to wear glasses I really did not need to wear them all of the time only when I was reading, but it was not too far off that I had to wear glasses all of the time for the objects in my sight were becoming fuzzier and harder to see, and with me being an active boy I needed to see everything that was coming close to me.  So, my parents decided to get me glasses that I could use during class time and during my outdoor activities and back in the 70s the options were not too numerous so some of my glasses looked kind of silly but they got the job done.

Sometimes there would be occasions I would find myself lying in bed, in the bathroom, or in stores that I would take off my glasses and locate objects around me and without others noticing I would try to squint my eyes enough to focus on them just to see if my eyes were getting any better.  It was not long until I realized that my eyesight was staying the same or getting worse so I stopped that practice before I became depressed with the situation.  It was a status that I had to live with and to accept as part of my life and that no matter how I felt about my newly diagnosed condition that it was a part of whom I was and that God had not made a mistake about my life and that it was a process of my genetic code in which I could not change.

With this blurred condition of mine, I found over time that I did not always need my glasses on to see where I was going.  The distance and routes of the short trips to the bathroom in the middle of the night or to the kitchen for a drink did not change and I realized that putting on my glasses was not necessary since I could make out the general features of the path that I was proceeding down.  At that moment in the night, I really did not care too much about what I looked like in the public eye I just wanted to find my way to my destination, complete my task and then proceed back to bed and complete my night’s sleep.  I still continue this process as an adult and really have not thought much about it until this morning when God decided to show me a thing or two about destination and guidance.

We live in a neighborhood with people that are for the most part older than us which means many of our neighbors go to bed earlier than we do but are usually already up and busy about as our 0530 alarm goes off.  My side of the bed is located closest to the window that provides a lookout towards the neighborhood.  And for approximately nine years now I have looked at the lights of our neighbors’ houses that are already on when I roll out of bed.  I do not have my glasses on since my immediate journey is across the hall into the bathroom where I begin my shower procedures.  Most of the time it is a quick glance out of the window and then on to the bathroom, but today God decided that it was going to be different.

We have all read or have been read scary stories and heard of or watched horror movies.  It is a fascination for some people to enjoy these types of settings and that is their prerogative, but these settings do present a common theme and that is the story or movie takes place at night.  The dark is always a great setting in order to set the stage for something bad to happen to people, it provides for a backdrop that takes the involved individuals out of their comfort zone and then forces them to begin to look for some type of light or shelter in order to stay and wait till conditions improve.  All of us have had this type of feeling at some time in their life and it really does not matter what the “darkness” is when we are approaching it or going through it, the dark always concerns us even if we are driving our cars through a well-lit city the dark always heightens our fear of not being able to see everything that comes our way.

Our personal walk with God can seem the same way.  All of us understand that we are not comfortable being in the dark and our enemy knows this as well.  God cannot choose our path nor can He tell us which direction to travel but He does know that no matter which path we choose we shall find obstacles and bad road conditions as we progress down our path.  This is a part of life and something that none of us can avoid.  Our eyesight becomes blurred at this time when our conditions change and the darkness overtakes our landscape but it is ok because we still have the capability of seeing what is around us.  We just have to slow down a bit and lose all of the distractions that we have created and try our best to focus on the objects that are around us as we continue down the road.  Yes, our enemy loves this state of our union because he can use our present conditions as a weapon against our confidence in the gift that God has given us, our eyes.

God did not promise us that our lives would be full of roses and that our walking conditions would always be in perfect stride, and even those who do not believe in Him understand this concept.  There will be times when bad occurrences will come our way and it is necessary that we understand that this will be a time where the enemy will show up and do his part in creating havoc within our lives.  It does not matter what the situation in our lives is either, our enemy is an opportunistic and equality-oriented being that does not care what your life is going through just as long as he gets his work done.  But as we jaunt through these tough, blurred and dark times we must always remember to keep our heads up and to look for the light that will provide the safe passage through our current placement in life.  It does not matter how dark or hopeless life may seem God will always provide a beacon in which for us to follow in order to guide us as we emerge from our conditions.  We still must complete our journey but we do not have to do it alone.  The Creator of life has provided a way in which guidance is possible and if we follow His light we will make it through this journey of ours with the knowledge that no matter what comes our way, He has already been there and knows the way out of the darkness.

Light is the “evil” of darkness because it allows whoever goes through the dark an alternative route towards safety and it represents the source of a successful journey.  There are many so called lights that provide a temporary source of direction along our way but look at the light’s source first before believing in its proclaimed long term answers.  When we are facing what looks to be a long dark period we tend to grab at and accept the first immediate answer that comes our way.  This is ok as long as we know that the source of the light is from God and His ways; ever wonder how our enemy knows to attack us at night?  It is because he understands our fear of the darkness and that our spiritual eyes can be blurred into seeing the true direction that we need to take.

Our enemy likes to operate in deliberately amplifying our lack of understanding about the spiritual concepts that affect our physical life.  If this blindness or blurry spiritual vision is deliberately enforced in our realm then the false light that we believe will provide the answers for us in time of need will quickly dim and increase our fears along the way.  It is of the utmost importance that we realize that we are spiritual beings and that there are two forces that are desperately vying for our lives.  One force will provide quick and seemingly appropriate answers but when examined these answers will only address the physical, human and self-answers that the world will agree with and the other force will provide a true source of light that will allow us to find our way to the finish line of life with peace and prosperity from the inside and not just the physical. 

For a long time, many of us have believed in and carried the light of the temporary torch.  Our spiritual arms have become tired due to the belief in this torch.  We have continually changed torches along our way and have even recycled them back to the one who gave the torch to us to be used again.  The changing of torches is a futile process and will not provide us with any pure answers to the darkness that surrounds us, it will only provide with tired arms that will cause us to slow our growth process during the times of darkness, along with the discouragement and despair of when the light begins to dim.

It is time to drop the false torches that we have carried for so long and accept the one true light that will last eternally and provide strength to us as we travel through our tough times.  This light shall never dim nor will it ever have to be changed or switched out.  It will always stay lit and as long as we hold it close to our life the guidance that it provides will supply the necessary means to complete our path when our eyes cannot see properly.  Our eyes may never sharpen back to their original clarity, but the true light will guide us and provide us with the corrective vision needed to see the dangers that are around us.

All of us have dropped the true light for a temporary torch, we are human and it is a normal process for us to believe others.  However, the one true light is still with us and it is never too late to permanently drop the dim light and accept the true light in our life.  Once we complete this step, the light will restore our vision and show us the way in which to proceed.  This light will not be conventional and it will not look normal to the world but it will be the only light that will withstand the test of time and it will be the only light that will protect us as we tromp through the dark swamps of our life.  Restore spirit and accept the true light back into your life not only will it provide a safe passage for you but it will also represent a guide for others to notice as well.

DLB