It can be very easy to not see people, especially people with obvious needs. We can be wrapped up in our own world, intent on getting to the next place, checking off the next task, and not paying attention to our surroundings. We can be preoccupied with our own needs and feelings. We can be overloaded with sensory input and shut down. Or we can be trying not to look – people who are obviously suffering can be annoying, difficult, make us feel helpless. Whatever the reason, we don’t always see.
Jesus is big on seeing. In his parable about the sheep and the goats, he says that those who are rewarded are those who had their eyes open to the people around them:
Then the righteous will answer him, “Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?” And the king will answer them, “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.”
Sometimes I think we are living through an epidemic of intentional blindness. How else could people spend the sums they do on entertainment or electronica for their children while elsewhere babies die from malnutrition or terror? How could we be so blind to the ongoing effects of systemic racism and economic inequality? Yes, we all need filters to screen out some of the world’s suffering, or we’d go mad – but when do filters become blinders?
"When did we see you, Lord?" How full our churches would be if more people had the experience of seeing Jesus. And yet, according to him, there he is, all over our streets, all over our lives. He is not present only in those who are suffering, but he is especially present in them, in us. What if we were more intentional about looking for him in the hurting and haunted? I preach this all the time, and forget it as often.
It helps when we start out with the “Where are you, Lord?” prayer, and ask the Spirit to lead us to someone in whom we might discern Jesus. How blessed our encounters might be, even with “difficult” people. (Difficult people, like two-year-olds, get a whole lot calmer when someone looks right at them and listens to them…)
Try it this morning. “Who are you going to show up in today, Jesus?” And then take a moment and see if anyone comes to mind, someone you might seek out. If no one occurs to you, wait and see. It helps if we keep our eyes open…
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