Anointed!

He said this and then spit in the dust, made a clay with his saliva, rubbed the paste on the blind man’s eyes and said, “Go wash in the pool of Siloam”. The man did, and he saw. John 9:6 from The Message

All I could see from where I stood, was three long mountains and a wood; I turned and looked another way, and saw three islands in a bay. Edna St. Vincent Millay from the poem Renascence

Randy and I were walking the other day around the lake behind the Field of Dreams at the church. We love the beauty of the property and the view it affords. While we were sitting on the bench, two friends walked by and remarked on the beauty of the setting. Then, he said, “You know, I was against the church buying this property, but I had no idea it was this beautiful.” Randy remarked, “I never knew that. Did you ever walk back here to see it?” When he shook his head, no, Randy said, “Aren’t you glad the church saw what you didn’t?” He needed to see it to appreciate it!

Our friend only looked at one aspect of the acquisition of the acres of land, but the committee who bought the land had the vision of what it could become! Now it’s filled with ball fields, children’s laughter and learning, and people around the lake all the time!

People see things in different ways, and that can have its advantages and its disadvantages. If two people tell the same story, it will probably be different. Different people have differing accounts on the Civil War, WWII, government, politics, etc. it depends on who is telling the story and their perception of the event.

I happen to love crime and mystery books and movies, and it seems that in each, the authorities always place their witnesses in different rooms, listen to the account of each, and compare the similarities and discrepancies.

The word anoint means “to pour on and rub in”. Jesus anointed the man in this verse and caused his eyes to become sighted. Then the man could see Jesus as he was, not only, as a prophet, a teacher, a man, but as Lord and Savior.

It makes all the difference when we can see things for ourselves rather than taking another’s word for it. Florence Chadwick, a long distance swimmer, attempted to swim 21 miles across the Catalina Channel and become the first woman to do so. The fog was so think, she couldn’t see land and despite the encouragement from her crew that land was near, after 15 hours and 55 minutes, she gave up and came on board the boat. In an interview later she said, “If I could have only seen the land for myself, I know I could have made it.”

When we can see things for ourselves, we are anointed and it changes things. It can change the way we see others. In the last months, I’ve begun to learn so many new things about our neighbors. Now, I see beyond any annoyances or differences and see the best in each of them. My eyes have been anointed.

It also changes the way we see ourselves. We’ve all done things during this virus that we never thought possible. We’ve embraced the lonely, called the sick, zoomed with relatives and friends, and visited in driveways and yards. We have seen others in a different light and we’ve been amazed at ourselves -our eyes have been anointed.

It changes the way we see our needs. During this time, we’ve seen people less concerned with what we don’t have and more thankful for things we do have. We have compassion and want to help the hungry, the imprisoned, and the homeless. Years ago when Randy and I served a circuit in the Covington area, which I thought was at the end of the world, one of the churches was so small that it was facing a financial crisis when we arrived. The people were panicking and began to turn their focus inward to save themselves. Once they were led to turn their focus outward and help the community, the church began to flourish. The people began to look beyond their own needs, and their eyes were anointed.

It also changes the way we see Jesus. We begin to realize that Jesus is worthy of our praise and worthy of our heart, mind and strength. He is in charge, and if we only let Him, he will anoint us with a new vision and a new strength. We can see Jesus for ourselves!

Jesus says there will be a test at the end where we are accountable for how we see Him, ourselves, others and the world.

One of my favorite hymns says it best. Open my eyes that I may see, glimpses of truth thou hast for me; Place in my hand the wonderful key, that shall unclasp and set me free. Silently now, I wait for Thee; ready, my God, they will to see; open my eyes, illumine me, Spirit divine. Clara H. Scott