My New Lenses

I have been learning how to follow God with a new set of lenses. My perspective on things has changed quite literally. In fact, it is no longer my perspective but God's. A friend shared with me that adjusting to these new lenses takes time. I'm looking at things that I've seen before with a different set of eyes; with the eyes of Jesus.

I feel compassion for the brother that is uncompassionate;
I feel love for the person that has never experienced love;
I feel happiness for the person whose joy has been dead for far too long.;
I feel sadness for the person who can't seem to get along with her family but is desperately trying.

Today I was in the Starbucks Cafe in Barnes and Noble and overheard a woman talking about going away to a different country. Going up to the counter to purchase something, I asked her where she was headed to. She answered: "Haiti." This was the bonding moment. The point in the conversation where we shared a felt need. I told her how one of my friends is going to Haiti this month through her church and how two of my friends are currently serving in the Dominican Republic through a missions trip for 21 days.

I've been understanding that if we are focused on things other than what God has intended for us; when we are preoccupied with living vicariously through someone else's experiences; then we miss what God wants to do in our lives at that very moment - in that very day. Our perspective shifts. In an essence, we begin to take our cloudy glasses out from their dusty case and put them on our face one more time. We are reluctant to see the world from God's perspective because it forces us to confront issues in our lives that those glasses have mulled over.

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" -2 Corinthians 5:17.

However, when we embrace these new lenses (provided at no cost to us), we begin to see life quite differently. Our thoughts change and our hearts begin to soften for the things of God become what we want for our lives. We cannot merely do this on our own. When we accept this free gift of sight to us, we accept the simple yet powerful truth that God has left an imprint on our lives. He is now a part of us.

So, why do some people not accept these new lenses? I can't speak for everyone, but I think it may be for a variety of reasons. Some of which may be obvious or hidden. It might not be until they accept the invitation of those new lenses and put them on that they begin to confront the tension between what is and what could be.

"He replied, "The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I could see." (Read all of John 9:1-41).

For me, I am still trying to adjust to my new lenses. It is not always easy trying to place yourself in another's shoes because it requires that you take yours off in order to walk in theirs. Sometimes, the shoe doesn't always fit. There are times when the brokenness of this world seems too hard to handle and then I am gently reminded of the one who gave me the lenses to see in the first place. We are a team and I could not possibly walk this journey alone.

Community is so important when you first put on those new lenses. Find some people who are learning how to follow Jesus and soon, you will have a group of friends committed to sharing, growing, accepting, and living out the Jesus-way: intentionally. However, we need to be aware of the people in our midst who wear the lenses but their life does not reflect the true way. They may say and do all of things that appear to be right, but in reality, are far from following Jesus. You can pray for them and allow your life to be a light to them. Jesus says that:

"Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path." -Psalm 119:105

There is a chorus of a song that goes like this:

"I was blind, but now I see.
I was broken but you carried me.
I was lost, now I'm found.
I was guilty but you turned me around.
Come, love, and rescue me."

/////////

May His word be present in my life and in your life. May our paths intersect and our lives embrace the reality that Jesus longs to be with his people forever. May we continue to persist even when the weather is less than perfect and even when there are rainbows in the sky. May we praise him and give him adoration. May our lives reflect the work that he has done in us and continues to do everyday. May be be risk-takers and not bystanders. And in everything, may He get all of the honor, glory, and praise.

Amen (or let it be so).

Copyright June 3, 2011 by Alex Puleo