Open our eyes that we might see

Life is like a glacier: 90% of reality is hidden from view. What's so fascinating is that since the Lord gave me the download for this blog post last week, I've watched a video of Kap Chatfield in which he explains how life is like playing a game of Fortnite where our very lives actually depend upon what we do in the game. But we're playing blindfolded.

That seems impossible, right? But we are not without resources. Recently, I also heard an illustration (given I think by Tiphani Montgomery) about a camp attended by girls and their fathers. The girls were blindfolded and had to navigate an area with trees and tripping hazards aided only by following the sound of their father's voice. The story goes that one girl stopped hearing her father's voice (because she was doing just fine and didn't need to shift course) so she followed directions given by another girl's father and ended up in a ditch. When she cried out for her father, he replied that he was still there and that he had never left. After he helps her out of the ditch she follows his voice completely and exlusively and arrives safely at their destination.

The final illustration I had in mind while writing this blog was from Indiana Jones where he has to cross a bridge high up in the air. Only problem is he can't see the bridge. But he realizes through interpreting the clues left to him in his father's diary that he'll have to take a leap of faith. Either the bridge will be there or he'll plunge to his death. He takes one harrowing step and the rest of the bridge gets revealed.

All of the above illuminates just how hard it is to navigate life when most of reality is in the unseen spiritual world, and very few of us were born with the ability to see into it. Just like Indy has to rely on the words of his father, we have the words of our Father in the Bible to reveal to us the spiritual realm which we cannot apprehend with our natural senses. Not only this, but as we read the Word of God, just like the little girl above we have to listen very carefully to the voice of Holy Spirit who is present in every believer. Jesus, describing Himself as a good shepherd tells us:

“And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.”” John‬ ‭10‬:‭4‬-‭5‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

This is good news! When we take that first leap of faith into the arms of our Savior, we are able to read the Word of God in such a way that the unseen realm is slowly revealed to us as if we had put on special prescription glasses which actually heal our vision so that over time the unseen realm gets clearer and sharper, allowing us to navigate obstacles much better years later than when we first began.

A better analogy would be that of a butterfly. We enter the world as catepillars and if we find our way to real food --the Bible– we can consume it voraciously and over time we will be transformed into an entirely genetically altered being. Consuming the Bible will reveal to us who we really were created to be as it also revelas the world around us. Did you know that as the hungry catepillar crawls around doing nothing but feasting on leaves, eventually it will develop an enzyme that will cause it to digest itself, breaking it down completely to the end that it be reborn as a butterfly with an entirely new perspective on the world. A butterfly is like a superhero catepillar with wings and a whole new POV.

This is what happens as we follow the words of Romans 12

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”‭‭Romans‬ ‭12‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭NIV‬‬

We are transformed - the Greek word metamorphoo like in metamorphosis - by the renewing of our minds into a butterfly with a view of the world we could never have immagined in our caterpillar state. We are no longer playing Fortnite with a blindfold on.

Once our eyes are opened, where we focus our gaze becomes the most important aspect of walking out a life of faith. We live in perilous times when hidden dangers and traps are everywhere. And to keep us from seeing them and from travelling the individual path Jesus has carved out for each one of us, our eye gates are constantly assaulted either by distraction or worse by things which defile us and sideline us. Jesus warns us:

“Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are healthy, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are unhealthy, your body also is full of darkness.” Luke‬ ‭11‬:‭34‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Where is your focus today? Are you seeing the world through special Bible-formed lenses which allow you to see into the unseen realm where most of the action takes place? Because if we're navigating life with just our 5 natural senses, we have no hope of knowing what's actually going on? We can't see the unseen forces that affect the world we see. We can't taste and smell what is rotten so that we can spit it out of our mouths. We can't hear the voice of the Lord. And we can't feel Holy Spirit goosebumps announcing His anointing or special presence.

If you're struggling with apprehending the spiritual realm, join me in praying for our eyes to be opened like the servant of Elisha.

“And when the servant of the man of God arose early and went out, there was an army, surrounding the city with horses and chariots. 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.” And Elisha prayed, and said, “Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.” II Kings 6:15-17 NKJV

Amen, Lord! Let it be to your servant as You have spoken.