Day 160: Guidance

Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, 'We see.'  Therefore your sin remains."  John 9:41

I find that the use of blindness as a metaphor is quite harsh.

We have other metaphors in the Gospels that are much easier to understand.  We are sheep that are not too good at living on our own, but we can be led in a direction and can be taught.  We are children who are innocent and willing to learn.  We are salt to give good flavor to the bland world.  We are light to illuminate the darkness.  But, are we blind?

I have to wonder, does blind in the New Testament mean not being able to see anything at all, or does that mean to be just visually impaired (nearsighted/farsighted)?  The metaphor would be easier for me to grasp if the latter because I have to wear glasses in order to see well.  At the same time, though, am I just being so prideful that I need to say that I can see?

I interpret Jesus' saying above as being against judgment.  We as humans have no right to take God's place and exercise judgment on the world.  When we judge, we claim to be seeing while we ourselves are blind.  After taking that into account, I can start to understand that blindness in this sense truly is blindness, where we cannot see a single thing no matter how hard we try or how thick of lenses we wear.  This makes Jesus' power that much more glorious, though, for Jesus not only teaches us, but he also transforms us.

As I consider blindness more and more, I think all about our stumbling around in the world without direction or help.  When we wander around, we will find it very difficult to get anywhere.  So, why should we take it upon ourselves to cast judgment on all of those around us?  Can we really lead others without Jesus?  Do we even know where we're going?  We can sure try to get around, but then, what if there's a hole right in front of us that we can't even feel our way out of?  What if there's somebody chasing after us?  A car?  That's what this world is to us.  There are so many unknowns, and we can't just wander around without any direction or guidance.

The most important fact for us to consider is the fact that we are truly blind.  We need Jesus to guide us through all the difficult places.  We need that strong hand to guide us at all times of the day, not just during the daytime.  We need someone who won't abandon us, and that's what Jesus is here for.  When we acknowledge that we need Jesus, Jesus will start walking beside us and in front of us.  With Jesus, we will find ourselves walking in infinite grace.

Day 120: Guidance

"But he said to him, 'If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.'"  Luke 16:31

This is something that relates to parenting.

Jesus reprimands those who are listening to him, for he wants them all to become followers by word and deed.  Yet, he knew that there would be some who wouldn't listen or take his words to heart.  In the same way, I see that this is the role of a good parent.

Growing up, and even to this day, my mom disciplines me whenever I do not listen.  I don't like it many times, but after I get over the shock, I realize that she only wants the best for me.  She wants me to grow and to live a fulfilling life.  I see that Jesus was the same.  If we as children don't learn how to listen to our parents, then how will we listen to anybody else around us?  How will we listen to others who don't provide us with food, nor converse with us, let alone even know our name?

To take these questions even further, how will we know what to listen for in the end times?  How will we know what direction to walk in?  We are very fortunate to have something as concrete as the bible.  In the bible we have many different stories telling us how to live a good life.  We have advice readily available to us.  And, above all, we have the Gospel of love being relayed to us throughout many lives, particularly that of Jesus, the ultimate sign of love.

I know that I have been blessed with a parent who shows me unconditional love and who leads me to God.  However, I do know that others are not blessed in that exact same way, sometimes even lacking a parental figure entirely.  The good news, though, is that we have the parental words of Jesus ready for us to receive.  Sometimes they are fatherly, and other times they are motherly.  We need to listen to these words and take them to heart, for Jesus wants us to come back home, and we will only be able to do that if we grow up at home.

Day 092: Encouragement

Then Moses called Joshua and said to him before all Israel, "Be valiant and strong, for you must go before this people to the land the Lord swore to their fathers to give them; and you shall cause them to inherit it.  But the Lord, He is the One who goes before you.  He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not be afraid, nor be terrified."  Deuteronomy 31:7-8

How would Joshua have felt hearing this?  Of course, for a while before this point he had been appointed to lead, but now it was getting serious - it was time for him to take the reins.

Joshua was there in Israel, witnessing all the issues.  He saw the people turn away from God so many times, but he continued to follow God.  He also saw what struggles Moses had in order to lead Israel forward.  He even saw the punishment that Moses received for doubting God.  Now he was supposed to take up this glamorous position.  I, for one, would be utterly terrified by such a job.  I'd run away as far as I could from the position.

We don't like for things to be difficult in our life.  We want things to go the way we plan them to, and we want everybody around us to understand us and follow our lead, whatever that might be.  However, God has very important plans for each and every one of us.  God appointed us before we were born, and as we grow, we learn more and more about where we are supposed to be going.  But that's where things get difficult.  Rather than follow things as they are written in our own minds and books, we are called to allow for God to lead us the way we need to be led.  We need to allow God to guide us to the Promised Land.

If it seems impossible, just take a moment to read about what Joshua did.  He ended up leading Israel to many different victories during battles so that they could control more land.  That all happened because he was faithful to God.  When we are faithful to God, we will find so many things falling into place.  God blesses us with this same benediction.  God does not want to scare us.  In fact, God is always calling our name, before all the peoples, commanding us to be strong as we will lead our way into the Promised Land. 

Day 066: Direction

"For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it."  Mark 8:35

 This sounds like quite an order, but it's for our own sake that Jesus commanded it.

But, to preserve our own life can seem pretty selfish, especially before God.  When we go about on our own, making everything in our life just the way we want it, many times the process leads us on a path away from God.  Our life would have our name on it, but it would fall very far from God.  Directing our lives can isolate us from all those around us, and then we will indeed be gaining our own world while losing our soul.

Losing our life means to let go of it.  We need to let go of our lives so that God can take it and shape it into the best that it can be.  What do Jesus and the Gospel mean?  They mean love.  They mean support.  They mean everything that is good.  So why would we want to keep our life from all of that?

Giving our life over to Jesus is a constant thing, though.  We periodically take it back from God's hands out of fear.  However, in order to make sure that God has complete control over our lives, we need to be in constant communication with God through prayer and reading the bible.  We will only be able to give our lives over for the Gospel's sake if we actually know what the Gospel is.  We direct our lives on the basis that we know our every thought.  If we familiarize ourselves with the Gospel, then we can allow for the Gospel to take over.  It will be a lot of work, just as Jesus pointed out (take up your cross), but Jesus will be there every step of the way, guiding us and helping us.

Take some time this Lent to familiarize yourself with God in a new way.  Find a new devotional, have a conversation with a faith leader or even your friends, or just sit down and read the Gospel of Mark (it's the shortest one).  Also, pray for guidance through your process of learning.

 

Day 031: Fulfillment

"The lips of righteous men understand lofty things, but men without discernment die in want." Proverbs 10:22

This proverb seems to be straightforward, but I end up asking, "Why would somebody want to go without discernment, then?"  We already have the facts that righteousness leaves us without want, but the proverb states that a lack of discernment is something that is real and possible.

Spiritual discernment is something that we all need to be aware about, because it can guide us in life.  I feel that spiritual discernment comes from a willingness to allow for the Holy Spirit to work in us and guide us in our lives.  But how do we make this work for us?

The answer comes from the first part, for the righteous understand lofty, high things.  It means that we need to be preparing our minds to start building up our understanding and knowledge.  It means that we need to devote ourselves more to the Holy Spirit.  And, of course, we are in a time when we have so many resources available to us, the chief of which is our bible.

I love the book of Proverbs because it makes me think about things.  Starting in Chapter 10, each verse brings me to think about an entirely new concept.  The catch, though, is to allow the proverb to live in me and through me.  I need to let the Holy Spirit guide me by the means of the words that I read.

When we prepare ourselves with reading, praying, meditating, and thinking, we can begin to comprehend the lofty things, the things that exist way past us.  We can start to understand the love of God, or the sacrifice of Jesus.  That preparation also allows us to invite the Holy Spirit to become a major driver of our lives.  And, when we let the Holy Spirit take control, we will be so fulfilled that we will not want anything else.