And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Matthew 9:35-36 ESV
Jesus, there were so many people. The myriads of men, women and children who crossed my path as I traveled abroad to visit my family. From the very old to the very young, scurrying through the airports, hauling their luggage up and down on the escalators, crowding together in lines at the gates, scrunched next to one another on the trams. From different cultures and religious backgrounds, speaking various languages. Where were they all headed?. How many of them are on the only journey that truly matters, a relationship with You as their savior? Please forgive me for seeing them only as obstacles to my goal of catching my plane on time, rather than as individuals created in Your image, in need of a shepherd to rescue them from their sins.
I remember—
The friendly Muslim woman who waited on me at the food counter. Has anyone told her the good news of salvation found only in You, Jesus? Please send someone to share Your love and grace with her soon.
The obviously ill gentleman, violently coughing, standing close to me as I sat waiting in the airport. My initial reaction, hoping he didn’t sit next to me on the plane, convicted me of my selfishness. I prayed for him silently. In the moment, I wasn’t brave enough to approach him to ask if I could pray out loud for him. Heal him of his sickness if he is still suffering. Deliver this man of the devastating disease of sin if He does not already acknowledge You as his personal savior.
The younger man across the aisle from me on the airplane, quietly reading Arabic on his tablet. Jesus, does He know You, the only one who can rescue him from his sins.? I pray You would open his eyes to believe in You as his savior and Lord.
Jesus, thank You for this lesson of sight You continue to teach me. This week, I did see the disabled woman in the electric shopping cart at Walmart, struggling to reach the makeup on the lower shelf. I set aside my shopping list and stopped, asking if she needed help. Together we were able to find the exact bottle she wanted to purchase. She was so grateful and it cost me so little. This simple act of kindness reminded me to slow down, see with Your eyes, and respond as Your Holy Spirit prompts.
In the busyness of this Christmas season, may I not miss the opportunities to see people with Your eyes of compassion and grace. Stir my heart to respond as You would. Maybe it’s only a smile, a hello, a silent prayer on their behalf. Maybe it’s taking the time to physically do something that requires a sacrifice on my part. Let me be willing to always react with love, as a reflection of Your light in a broken and dark world.
In Jesus’ name, the one who sees and cares for all,
Amen.
For further prayer and meditation:
“We may think we already see those around us. But we must ask if we are truly seeing them. In our honest moments we may have to say, as Bartimaeus did, “I see people. They look like walking trees” (Mark 8:24). We need the ongoing miracle of Jesus to see not just the blurred images of people, but the intricate detail—the glory and the ashes of the lives we intersect. We can be encouraged by what follows: “Once more Jesus put his hands on the man’s eyes. Then his eyes were opened, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly” (Mark 8:25). The gift of seeing clearly is simply to see people as God sees them.” Scott Arbeiter, “The Gift of Seeing” in Christianity Today.
“Give Me Your Eyes” By Brandon Heath
“Give Me Your Eyes to See, Give Me Your Heart to Respond “ Prayer Devotional, written to accompany a sermon series at my church. (Another time the Lord woke me up to see the people around me!)
