I can't see a thing...

As day after day go by, I feel like I take on more and more baggage. It is like the stress and burdens of everyday life leave their mark. I get through the stress of missing a flight or the burden of dealing with ants in our living room or the worry of how my daughter will get through this difficult stage. I move on from each one of these, but the finger prints of these burdens leave their mark, and sometimes these marks build up.

It's like each problem leaves a smudge on my glasses. As I move on past issues, I get more and more smudges and so my vision gets worse and worse. I don't even remember which problem caused which smudge, all I know is that I am still trying to meet the challenges of each day not seeing things as well as I should. I also get a headache and get a bit grumpy because of all these smudges.

There have been times in which things have happened that have caused more than a smudge. I actually end up with a crack in my glasses. Something like that will never go away, but it must be dealt with.

However, most of the time, they are just smudges. While at first they are annoying, over time they build, one on top of the other. I don't notice how my vision is being reduced. No single smudge is that big on it's own or really that thick. Anyway, I tell myself that I'm too busy to stop and do something about them.

Then some thing happens. Most of the time this thing is not good. Someone I dearly love has a health scare, one of my children cries out for help in a destructive way, I have to face my own mortality, I have to deal with a life changing decision. These things cause me to stop and see that I have no idea what I am doing. I have been plowing through life not seeing things as they really are. I have made decisions with limited information.

So I stop, take my glasses off, and clean them. Probably, the right thing to say is I ask God to clean them.

So He does. He takes my glasses off and cleans them. Of course I am scared as I stand there, blind trusting in Him. This is typically when I am right in the middle of this thing or event that finally makes me stop. It's not very comfortable. So I wait. Eventually I get my glasses back.

When I put the glasses back on, I am amazed at the view. Everything is so clear and bright. I can see and understand details I couldn't before. I forget about all that stupid small stuff that caused those smudges and I wonder why I went so long before asking for help. It's great to again see the color and beauty of things, such as the crispness of rain and the freckles on my son's face and the radiance of my wife's beautiful hair, and the individual leaves on the tree.

I can now see the first touch of sadness in the eyes of someone I love so that I can step in and tell her she is loved before the evil comes in and takes her away from me. I can hear the laughter begin so that it can warm my heart before it fades away. I can see the fear rise in his eyes and tell him he is strong and courageous. I can hear the first few notes of the song so that I can get caught up in the melody and sing along. I can see as He would want me to see, the way things really are.

I need to stop more often and ask God if I am missing something. Am I seeing things as clearly as He would have me see them?

If so, help me, God. Make the blind again see.