Lately I've been praying for eyes that see like Jesus. I want to see people for what they are; created by God, loved by Him, desired by our Lord, to be fully His.
I am humbled. I am humbled because He has created in me a heart for others that I have only longed for in the past. I love my family, my children intensely. That is so easy for me. I can even love other people's children pretty easily.
But strangers? Homeless? People that have been deeply hurt? Or worse yet, people that have hurt others? Things that I may see as too great a sin to love. Or maybe they've hurt me? They've dug a hole and somewhere inside me I've decided they deserve to live in it for the rest of their lives.
This isn't so. And it's more than humbled my being. They hurt. They feel. They need Jesus and love and acceptance. Just like I do. Just like my kids do.
One day I realized I no longer turned away, I found myself praying for the people with sad eyes. I found myself humbled to the point of realizing it's not what they've done, it's what they are choosing to do about it. It's not what's been done to them, it's living in the freedom of putting the past behind us. It's about living in the hope of Christ.
My prayer circle has broadened to include more than just the helpless, innocent children, the fatherless, the orphan, the hurting. My heart now sees more deeply into the souls of the people around me, because Jesus created them. His heart hurts for his children.
When one of my children hurts a sibling, my heart aches. I am broken that my own child chose to hurt someone that loves them. I am saddened because they really should be looking out for each other. I am even angry because they did not control their actions. I am aching because one of my children is hurting.
How much more does God feel this for us? Each time we think a bad thought or say something nasty or purposefully offend someone, I can almost feel the sinking feeling in God's heart. "Why must you hurt each other?"
But as sad as I am when one of my children hurts another or disobeys, I never stop loving them. I am ready to hold them, hug them, and go on with life. But we deal with it. We confess. We are broken. We forgive.
As parents we see the good in our children, but we also see them at their worst. And yet, we still love them. We fight for them. We'd do anything for them It's a fierce kind of love that doesn't exist in many relationships. It's set apart and special. And it's a beautiful picture of the way the Lord loves us. There's discipline and guidance and free choice. But there's also forgiveness and mercy and grace.
When my adopted children (finally) come home, I do not expect them to love me. I don't really expect them to like me every day. But I want to see them through His eyes. I want to love them like Jesus loves them.
I want to pray for those around me that are hurting, but not in a generic way. In a way that is attentive and loving. In a way that my children might understand that God loves us all, and we all need Him desperately. In a way that when my children hurt each other, we are willing to forgive. In a way that doesn't lose hope for healing.
So I pray that you can see people through His eyes. Because we are all beautifully created in His image. We are all sinful. But we can all choose forgiveness. We can all choose Christ.
I am humbled. I am humbled because He has created in me a heart for others that I have only longed for in the past. I love my family, my children intensely. That is so easy for me. I can even love other people's children pretty easily.
But strangers? Homeless? People that have been deeply hurt? Or worse yet, people that have hurt others? Things that I may see as too great a sin to love. Or maybe they've hurt me? They've dug a hole and somewhere inside me I've decided they deserve to live in it for the rest of their lives.
This isn't so. And it's more than humbled my being. They hurt. They feel. They need Jesus and love and acceptance. Just like I do. Just like my kids do.
One day I realized I no longer turned away, I found myself praying for the people with sad eyes. I found myself humbled to the point of realizing it's not what they've done, it's what they are choosing to do about it. It's not what's been done to them, it's living in the freedom of putting the past behind us. It's about living in the hope of Christ.
My prayer circle has broadened to include more than just the helpless, innocent children, the fatherless, the orphan, the hurting. My heart now sees more deeply into the souls of the people around me, because Jesus created them. His heart hurts for his children.
When one of my children hurts a sibling, my heart aches. I am broken that my own child chose to hurt someone that loves them. I am saddened because they really should be looking out for each other. I am even angry because they did not control their actions. I am aching because one of my children is hurting.
How much more does God feel this for us? Each time we think a bad thought or say something nasty or purposefully offend someone, I can almost feel the sinking feeling in God's heart. "Why must you hurt each other?"
But as sad as I am when one of my children hurts another or disobeys, I never stop loving them. I am ready to hold them, hug them, and go on with life. But we deal with it. We confess. We are broken. We forgive.
As parents we see the good in our children, but we also see them at their worst. And yet, we still love them. We fight for them. We'd do anything for them It's a fierce kind of love that doesn't exist in many relationships. It's set apart and special. And it's a beautiful picture of the way the Lord loves us. There's discipline and guidance and free choice. But there's also forgiveness and mercy and grace.
When my adopted children (finally) come home, I do not expect them to love me. I don't really expect them to like me every day. But I want to see them through His eyes. I want to love them like Jesus loves them.
I want to pray for those around me that are hurting, but not in a generic way. In a way that is attentive and loving. In a way that my children might understand that God loves us all, and we all need Him desperately. In a way that when my children hurt each other, we are willing to forgive. In a way that doesn't lose hope for healing.
So I pray that you can see people through His eyes. Because we are all beautifully created in His image. We are all sinful. But we can all choose forgiveness. We can all choose Christ.