FROM THE PASTOR
September 10, 2022
If I recall correctly, it would have been about 1957 and would have been somewhere around the age of 8 when it was determined that I needed glasses. Prior to that diagnosis, I would sit in class and vigorously squint at the chalk board. In desperation I learned that if I put a finger at the outside corner of each eye near the temple and pulled the eye lid into an even severer squint. I could see better… but still not perfect. Sadly, the lack of sight affected more than just my ability to see. Every day was a challenge because my world looked a little different than others who had clear vision. It wasn’t until I finally got help and received glasses that I learned how much I missed.
In 2017, I started experiencing double vision. It came on suddenly while driving into Chicago to drop my daughter and her family off at Midway Airport. I didn’t mention anything to them so they wouldn’t worry but drove the 150 miles home alone with one eye shut to see clearly. The best I am able describe the impairment is for you to imagine seeing everything from words on a page to objects in the world from two unrelated perspectives at the same time. For me the images rest at 10:30 and 4:30 on a clock face. Depending on the distance, I see the images overlapping or they can be completely separated. The double vision never goes away and while the majority of days are tolerable … some, well some I just function cautiously.
God designed our eyes just far enough apart, so we see depth. Our eyes are purposely designed to see from 2 perspectives but work in harmony with the other, so we see only one object dimensionally. For me, one eye rotates down a little and the other turns in ever so slightly. The result is that my eyes can’t work synchronously, and my vision is skewed. The eye doctor prescribed lenses with prisms several years back … it’s helped, I can function safely. but has not cured the condition.
The frustrating part is I have almost 20-20 vision without glasses at a distance. I see everything clearly, just in double, which in reality means I don’t see clearly. The amazing part is that my brain has adapted, and, on most days, I function with very little realization that how I view my surroundings is not like everyone else. If I catch a ball, I just need to make sure I catch both of them and I joke that if my vision were corrected Sunday worship attendance would drop by 50%. What this means is that I have to make sure to stay on top of the situation to ensure I don’t slowly slip into a worse condition. I do that by recognizing that I need help.
As a Christian, I am a firm believer that God does not allow experiences like this to come into our lives without a divine purpose. Yes, sometimes it’s because we’ve wandered from Him and He is drawing us back to Him. But sometimes it’s because He’s building and molding and preparing us to accomplish something for Him that, without that experience, we would be unable to accomplish as effectively and compassionately as His divine purpose has set before us. After all God’s Word declares …
Isaiah 64:8 (NASB95)
8But now, O Lord, You are our Father, We are the clay, and You our potter; And all of us are the work of Your hand.
As a follower of Christ, the question is. “Am I willing to allow Him to place His hands on me to mold me and use me to His glory (even if I am not made privy to the full picture or purpose). Let me be honest, I don’t know what the purpose of my particular eye journey is. And yes, this experience has limited a number of activities I enjoy. But I relish the blessing of being found worthy to be used of my Lord even more than what I’ve lost.
2 Thessalonians 1:11–12 (NASB95)
11To this end also we pray for you always, that our God will count you worthy of your calling, and fulfill every desire for goodness and the work of faith with power,
12so that the name of our Lord Jesus will be glorified in you, and you in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Perhaps you’re reading this and find yourself confused because you can’t quite comprehend why it delights me so to be used by Him. it baffles you why believers find journeys like this encouraging… even exhilarating. Let me assure you, we’re not super-human or super-spiritual. We just see our walk through this life with a different perspective. How? God has made the believer to see clearly. Why? Because we trust our relationship with Christ. What difference does it make? Joy over sadness … peace over worry … contentment over discontentment.
Remember …
Luke 11:34 (NASB95)
34“The eye is the lamp of your body; when your eye is clear, your whole body also is full of light; but when it is bad, your body also is full of darkness.
Trust Jesus Christ today … He makes all the difference.
Thank you for your faithfulness. Pastor Larry
