There is a lighthouse about five miles south of where we live in Harpswell, and about ten miles east of Portland, Maine, called Halfway Rock Lighthouse. Almost every morning on my walk, unless it’s foggy, I can see this lighthouse in the distance. From day to day it can appear very different. When the air is very clear the lighthouse can look to be less than three miles away. It may be because sometimes you can see the water several miles beyond it. When it’s hazy it can appear more like ten miles away. The position of the sun, even the tide and how rough the water is can make the lighthouse look different. Regardless of how it looks, it never moves and is always the same distance away.
There are many things that can determine how clearly we see God. Here are some of them.
- How much we love God
- The state of our faith
- How we are feeling
- How much time we give God
- Our attitude
When one of our daughters was little, she stated to me, “I am not afraid of the dark in the daytime.” Likewise, when we see God clearly we are not afraid. On the days our spiritual vision is weak, we may give in to fear. So we must always walk in faith, keeping our eyes on our Savior.
When I was much younger, it bothered me when people in their public prayer would say, “I magnify the Lord.” It seemed to me that they were trying to make God larger than He was. No, what they meant was, help me to see You as You really are. Most people don’t wear glasses so they can see things bigger than they are but so they can see them as they are.
Living in chronic stress every day can make us dull to the things of God. Keeping the Sabbath is a great way to relieve stress. We can see clearer when we have a day of rest every week. Now you may say, “Fine, but I am a mother with several small children. How can I get away from stress and have a day of rest?” There is no easy answer to this, but I think of one solution that some husbands and fathers are faithfully doing. Get up with the children on Saturday morning and let their mother sleep in. I did this some but am not sure I did it enough.
Sin in our life can also obscure our vision, but since this subject was well covered two weeks ago in the Sabbath e-mail I won’t say any more about it here.
Also, when we become too focused on the daily news, our outlook can become distorted.
Daily Bible reading and prayer are two of the best things we can do to keep our vision clear and sharp. Some will say, “I just don’t have the time.” Remember, we all have time to do what we consider to be important. You don’t have to do this the way someone else does. Just read the Bible and pray in the way that works for you.
God bless you on this Sabbath,
Ralph
