Day 3 – Blurry Trees
“And they came to Bethsaida. And some people brought to him a blind man and begged him to touch him. And he took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village, and when he had spit on his eyes and laid his hands on him, he asked him, “Do you see anything?” And he looked up and said, “I see people, but they look like trees, walking.” Then Jesus laid his hands on his eyes again; and he opened his eyes, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly.”
Mark 8:22-25
“I see people, but they look like walking trees.” This passage kept me camped out for a long time. I believe this is the only instance in which Jesus touches someone twice to heal them.
Was He having an off day? Was the guy just really, really blind?
I don’t think the limitation was on Jesus’ side, and I actually don’t think it was on the man’s either. I believe that it may have been an intentional lesson for all of us.
That Jesus wants more for us than to just “get by”. We can infer from the text that the blind man was able to see at some point because he already knew what a tree was and referenced it.
So was he better off than he was? Yes. He could now see, although poorly. He could probably have avoided a cliff if needed.
Yet, Jesus offered more than that. He longed for him to see clearly. He longed for him to see the leaves on the trees dancing in the wind, to see the laugh lines in the faces of friends.
So I wonder if the lesson for us in this is, are we content in just getting by with Jesus, or are we willing for Him to truly work in our lives and to heal us deeply?
Inward: Jesus, what do you want me to know? What are the areas where I am just seeing blurry trees? How have I been content to just get by?
Outward: Jesus, what do you want me to do? Help me to celebrate being able to truly see after encountering You. Help me to pray that I would not just get by, but to truly see the fullness of who You are.
