Throughout the season of Lent our daily devotions have been written by members of the Faith Lutheran community. Our theme this Lent is “Jesus Our Healer.” Today’s devotion comes from Alan Balius.
They came to Bethsaida. Some people brought a blind man to him and begged him to touch him. He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village; and when he had put saliva on his eyes and laid his hands on him, he asked him, “Can you see anything?” And the man looked up and said, “I can see people, but they look like trees, walking.”
Then Jesus laid his hands on his eyes again; and he looked intently and his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly. Then he sent him away to his home, saying, “Do not even go into the village.” Mark 8:22-26
“I can’t see the forest for the trees.” I admit that I often miss the big picture because my evaluation is too close, too critical. But what if someone admits, “I can see people, but they look like trees, walking?”
Whenever we have our eyes fitted for new lenses, the optometrist asks, “Which is better? One or two? Three or four?” Eventually, the right lens is identified. The blind man wasn’t expecting an eye exam, but Jesus asked him, “Can you see anything?” He replied that he couldn’t see clearly, so Jesus’ second treatment, “Which is better?” ensured that he could indeed see “everything clearly.”
Perhaps, like me, you wear “monovision” contact lenses; one is for close vision, the other for far. If only one is worn, it’s very difficult to see. When both are worn, one can see “everything clearly,” near and far. It can take a while to get used to this prescription before “whole” vision is attained.
Jesus gives us wholeness, “shalom,” in healing us. Wholeness means that it’s not enough to see, hear, or understand the Good News in part. God wants us to see the whole picture of Good News so that others will, too.
Let us pray, “Oh, Lord, haste the day, when my faith shall be sight.” Help us, like the hymn-writer Horatio Spafford, and like the man given sight in Bethsaida, to seek healing and wholeness in all of our relationships—with you, with family, friends, and those who are not yet here with us. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Daily Devotions 
March 20, 2015 at 6:00 pm |
A Men
March 21, 2015 at 6:47 am |
From your use of the Hebrew word “shalom” I have learned that it means more than the simple greeting, “peace”. It is also defined as a complete peace; a feeling of contentment, completeness, wholeness, well being and harmony.
Acts 10:38 “Now God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. Jesus went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.”