Recently, I had the oil changed in my pickup. A part of the oil change routine was that one of the service technicians washed the windows on my truck. I happened to glance up and see the individual doing this and thought to myself, “Oh, that’s nice…but they weren’t that dirty.” Shortly after that I paid my bill and headed out into the day. As I drove away from the business I began to sense that something was different…there weren’t so many spots that I was looking through on the windshield. I could actually see things a bit more clearly. Wow, it just made things seem a little brighter.
Now understand, the windshield wasn’t mud covered, like you see on some pickups around town. However, I will admit there were a lot of bug splatters and the usual acquired grime on the windshield that builds up over time. All of that was simply adding a “layer” to what I was looking through as I drove my truck. Yet all that grime altered my perspective slightly as I looked out the window. I began to realize that the “crud” on my windshield had simply become “normal” to my perspective. I just got used to it always being there.
We all have a lens through which we see the world. You might be thinking…”But Keith, I don’t wear glasses. So, I don’t see through a lens.” Well, that may be true (concerning glasses), yet I still believe that whether or not we wear corrective lenses, we all see through a “lens” of one type or another. We see through the lens of our experiences. We see through the lens of beliefs and traditions. We see through the lens of our education. We see through the lens of our relationships. We see through the lens of what we value and what is important to us. We see through the lens of our economic or financial status. We see through the lens of what “makes sense” to us. I could go on and on, but I’m guessing you get the point I’m making. We all have a lens…in fact, we each likely have multiple lenses.
Jesus, through his teaching, stories, attitudes, and actions, was really good at holding up a mirror to help people see the lenses they were seeing through. Sometimes this made people feel uncomfortable, sometimes it made them angry and even in some circumstances it caused people to feel joy or relief because they realized that Jesus didn’t see them the way they saw themselves. Part of what makes Jesus and our Christian Faith unique and special, is that it provides a different lens to see through rather than the lens our culture or world tends to offer.
So, for just a moment today I want us all to consider a question, “What is the lens you see through?” And please understand that some lenses are good, important, and necessary. I’d be in big trouble without my eyeglasses, and my Christian Faith, helping me see more clearly!! A helpful step in our faith journey just might be identifying and making a list of the lenses that we see through? Do any of those lenses need cleaning? Do any of the lenses cause me to see people or things in a way contrary to how Jesus seems them? Do any of my lenses need to be replaced? Do any need to be adjusted or even strengthened? These are good questions to ask ourselves as we all seek to see more clearly the world, our God, and the people who are around us.
I’m about to head to the eye doctor today. What will he say about my lenses? Just as this regular appointment is important for my eye sight, a regular appointment with God asking about the other lenses we see through, might be an important part of our spiritual growth and our connection to God.
Serving Together,
Pastor Keith