Open my eyes and ears, Lord

There's a distinct difference between those who are the sheep of Christ and those who aren’t.  By nature, we all want to follow the Good Shepherd.  We were created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26), and we instinctively want to be with the one whom we're most like.  More than that, everyone wants a savior who’ll love them no matter what and who will rescue them from evil when no one else can.  But many don't recognize his voice.

"If you are the Christ, tell us plainly," these people say.

Jesus answers, "I told you and you do not believe." (John 10:22-30)

The early Church in Jerusalem heard of the Gospel being preached to the Greeks (Gentiles) and their coming to believe.  This was hard for them to understand.  Many of the disciples of Jesus had yet to understand that His message was for the whole world.  And so they sent Barnabas to see what was going on.  This passage in Acts (11:19-26) is interesting to me because it says Barnabas, “arrived and saw the grace of God.”  Seeing the grace of God requires approaching a situation with an open, non-judgmental heart.  As Jesus Himself said, “Let those who have the eyes to see, see!” (Matthew 13:9-17) Often in the bustle of day-to-day life, especially when we’re under stress, it’s hard to “have the eyes to see.”  We don’t like to hear news that conflicts with our preconceived ideas of what is going on.  Jesus encourages us to approach every situation in life with an open heart and open eyes and truly discern what God is showing us.

In John’s Gospel (10:22-30) we also find people looking for the truth.  But they wanted it said to them in a particular way.  They resisted understanding or discerning unless they received the news in a fashion that fit with their preconceived ideas of what it meant to be the Christ.  Jesus responded by telling them to look around.  He told them they needed to believe the evidence of their own eyes.  The works of the Father were (are) evident all around them (us) and yet, they (we) want it said “plainly.”

Have you ever wanted God to come down from Heaven at times and tell you “plainly” the answer to this or that question?  He doesn’t do that.  He does it in His perfect way with His perfect language.  It’s the language of faith and it requires a complete submission of our minds and wills to God to hear and understand.  This is the only way to become converted in the way God wants us to be.

How often do I miss God speaking to me because I want to hear it “plainly”?  Like those questioning Jesus in John’s Gospel, I often want God to speak to me on my own terms.  However, as God says (‘plainly’), “my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways” (Isaiah 55:8-9).

My prayer today is that I have “the eyes to see and the ears to hear”.  May I be open to God‘s Word and Truth in the way He chooses to speak to me.