Mist

I'm up even earlier today than I usually would be during the week.

I am on a very early train.

I can't see much past the windows on the train because it's so foggy outside. I can see maybe ten feet away from the carriage on either side before the world disappears into swirling white mist.

Waiting at the station, it was cold and damp and misty and I couldn't see very far ahead of me. In fact, I could hear the train a long time before it became visible through the fog.

Sometimes in life, we can't see more than a few feet in front of us either. We can see our own feet, but the rest of the road dissolves into the mist. We don't know where we're going or what the future might hold.

If, like me, you like to be organised and know the 'big picture', this lack of direction and vision is frustrating and limiting and restricting.

But it also makes me more dependent on God.

The Bible describes how God's word reveals our path to us -

"By your words, I can see where I'm going; they throw a beam of light on my dark path."

[Psalm 119:103 MSG]

We may not be able to see the road ahead of us, but as we take small steps of faith and grow closer to God through His word, we find that the road will appear at our feet.

Blurred Vision

What a beautiful, sunny Autumnal day.

Clear blue skies, a crisp breeze and bright, warming sunshine.

Annoyingly, I've had something on my sunglasses all day.  A blurry spot which has made the vision in my right eye really hazy and fuzzy.

I haven't been able to remove it, despite repeatedly rubbing it and trying to clean the lens.

I could still see, but not perfectly.

It reminded me of Jesus' message about judging other people:

"Why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye."

[Matthew 7:2-5 NLT]

When our own vision is blurred or distorted in some way, it prevents us from seeing things as they really are.  It prevents us from seeing ourselves or others as they really are.  And it prevents us from seeing God as He really is.

Jesus says until we get our own vision sorted, we won't be able to help or lead others.   I don't think that means that we have to be perfect before we can help others to see, but we need to be aware of our own areas of blindness.   We need to acknowledge our own short-sightedness and our need for help with our vision.

Only then will we be able to see properly.  Only then will we see things as they really are.