THE EYES HAVE IT

Danna Shirley

           I recently woke with my left eye red and irritated (2005). I rubbed it all day long and by evening I knew this was not going to be a “wait and see” kind of condition. When I called the optometrist the next day, they could work me in sometime in the afternoon. Since I was a new patient, I had to complete the paperwork drill. The new patient information sheet was a copy of a copy of a copy, and so on . . . it was hardly legible. I had no idea what I was signing but I did it anyway. It was comical to be a patient with a sight problem going to an eye doctor who used forms that no one could read. The secretary in me couldn’t resist so I took a blank form home to retype it and returned it to them. The doctor was young, looked fresh out of high school, and I was a bit concerned if she knew what she was doing. She prescribed drops during the day and drops at night.

           After two weeks with no improvement, I called an ophthalmologist who could work me in sometime in the afternoon. The new patient information sheet was a pleasure. I could actually read every word. As I sat in reception, the doctor bounded down the hall and gleefully called, “Where’s my next victim?”  J  He was older and I hoped wiser. He put me at ease immediately. Upon examination he said, “You’ve got a pretty angry eye, there.” He prescribed drops during the day and drops at night. Within three applications my eye was much better.

           I am telling you about EYES because they are very precious. We only have two of them and if we lose one, we could walk funny. If we lose both, we can’t walk much at all. My mother has had two cornea transplants in each eye and is now legally blind so I had the doctor examine my eyes thoroughly while I was in the chair. He said everything looked good for now but that didn’t mean something couldn’t develop as I got older. Seeing my mother live with her sight problem for the last thirty years has given me a great appreciation for total eye care.

           We see grass and trees and flowers, birds and dogs and cats, family and friends. We can watch television or drive to the movies, see things worth seeing and things we shouldn’t. Everything is recorded in our memory banks and can be recalled at any time and to any degree, accurately or vaguely. Our physical eyes can see this world all around us—but what about our spiritual eyes?

           Spiritual sight is just as precious but if out of focus or impure, a doctor cannot prescribe eye drops to make it better. When God shines His spotlight on our life, He exposes things we probably don’t want to see—like our faith, or lack of it; our prayer life, or lack of it; our attitude, good or bad; our tongue, sweet or sour; our relationships, in tact or alienated. 

           He also knows if we have a critical, judgmental, or unforgiving heart. All of these areas can have infections, too, if our spiritual eyes don’t or won’t see them. If left to ourselves, we can justify anything and everything we do, but God wants us to see clearly—with spiritual eyes; to look deeper within, not to condemn us but to expose our shortcomings so that we can change them.

           God shines His light into my life to bring to my attention areas I need to examine, to help me change for the better, to be more like Christ in all of my dealings. He is my Gentle Reminder when I tend to be blind. He is my “Eye Drops” to cleanse and refresh my spiritual eyes!

P.S.  I was in that first doctor’s office recently (2008) and they are still using the form I typed three years ago.