“Though I was blind, now I see.” —John 9:25, and part of one of the most well-known hymns in the world. I get chills every time I read the words or hear them being sung.
Do we ever stop to think about that Amazing Grace that helps us see with different eyes? Do we stop to think about how blind we are to things outside of our immediate moment? Do we stop to think about what that grace does in and through us to change the world around us?
I have two distinct memories of hearing Amazing Grace. One was at my grandpa’s funeral; the organs swelled and we all cried and there was something special about the fact that he chose that to be played at his final farewell.
The other time is when Barack Obama spontaneously sang this hymn at the service for the nine men and women killed in Charleston, South Carolina, at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church. (Watch it here.) He gave a eulogy at the service and at the end of it he broke into the hymn. Leading up to the hymn, Obama spoke of hope, of having an open mind and more importantly, an open heart. He spoke of a “reservoir of goodness” as spoken about by author Marilynne Robinson and how if we can tap into that grace which allows for the reservoir of goodness to be shared with each other, anything is possible. At a time of devastating grief, of oppressive violence, after the families of those men and women murdered chose to use their Amazing Grace eyes to forgive the killer, the families, the church, the nation—we were reminded that when we see with Amazing Grace eyes, anything is possible.
Anything is possible.
If we can take our earthly eyesight and turn on our spiritual eyesight, toward others and toward ourselves. (That means remembering that you’re made in the image of God as much as your neighbor is.)
If we can take our earthly hearts and open them up, as God asks us to, and see with the heart of a child of God.
Anything is possible.
I really believe that.
Think about what literal eyesight does for us. It helps us know. It helps us understand. It gives us a more complete picture of whatever we’re looking at because, well, we’re looking at it.
In the story of the man whose sight was restored by Jesus (John 9:13-41), the Pharisees were so stubbornly stuck in what they thought was right (the absence of the true Messiah, believing that one shouldn’t perform miracles on the Sabbath) because that’s how they chose to see, with legalistic, earthly eyesight. The man who was healed stood firm in what he knew: I was blind and now I see! The Pharisees questioned him a few times and he was clearly exasperated: I already told you and you didn’t listen. The Pharisees threw him out, Jesus came for a chat, and the man’s belief—his eyesight—was vindicated.
If we see with the heart of a child of God, with the conviction of a man who just had his eyes healed by the Messiah, with the compassion and empathy and non-judgment and grace that God has so shown us… How different this world would be. How different we would be.
What about you? Email me & tell me what Amazing Grace has done for your spiritual eyesight.
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