Seeing Beyond What You See

So much of the time we just see what we see and go on.  We hear what we hear and move on.  How are you? Fine, thank you, how are you? Fine. That’s nice.

But that’s not really what’s going on.  Or, that’s not all that’s going on.  It never is.

A friend of ours had been battling the ravages of cancer for many months and was ushered into glory a few days ago.  I learned so much from him… the way he lived and the way he died was so instructive. He’s now seen the glorious morning beyond the sunset.

He had ties all over the world.  Those ties were connections, connections he made because he listened and he saw beyond what he saw.  He invested in people. O, not monetarily, although, I’ve no doubt that that happened, it was an investment of listening, an investment of teaching, an investment of personalized, specific prayer, an investment of remembering.  He saw beyond what he saw and he remembered.  He totally got it that his stories were not just his own but were about the people he was with — the people in his story — that their experience was as, or more, important as his own.  He totally got that.  And he remembered to give credit… decades later, he remembered.

As days pass, I realize over and over just how invaluable life is and that the influence of even one life is profound.  I thought that again today as I was talking with a woman who’d experienced a separation from her husband and the painful loss of what was and what could’ve/should’ve been.  As she recounted a few events, I could see behind the pain in her voice and the tears in her eyes, there was the unmistakable grace, mercy and joy of the Lord.  In the midst her pain she knew that joy.

I’m glad for these encounters — no, I don’t specifically mean death, loss, separation, grief — I mean, these encounters with reality — the reality of each life and what each life represents.  Because each life is not just about experiences, achievements and miles traveled — life’s about all the in-between’s.  Life’s about the people in our story.  Life’s about seeing beyond what we see.

And seeing beyond what we see is a life of faith — if we know Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith, it’s really about eternal life beyond the sunset.

If you do not have this assurance, if you do not know the Lord Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, please write to me, I’d love to share with you the Truth of the gospel and gift of salvation by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.  He is the only way, the only Truth, the only Life.

Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” Acts 4.12