Can You See It?

I remember a day years ago, driving to work with a colleague who was a hunter.  As the sound of the pavement was thumping under our tires, out of the blue he said "Can you see it?  Do you see that deer over there in the field?"  I looked and looked and for the life of me I simply could not see that deer, but he was talking with such assurance in his voice I knew it must be there, it was just not coming into focus for me.  Finally, with much effort, I was able to see what had come into view so easily for my friend and there it was, a big, beautiful White Tail meandering through some bush.

How easy it is to see something when your eyes are trained to perceive it!  AND, how easy it is to be oblivious to what is going on around you when you don't know what you are looking for.

There was a group of men who were in the countryside among many people who had nothing to eat and there was need of food to help them in their hunger.  A discussion broke out among some of them which convinced them that there was nothing that could be done.  They thought that it made logical sense to see the equation: no food, isolated, no help----no options.

But what they failed to see was that Jesus was right there among them and in Him there is always hope!

In Mark 8:17 Jesus finally says to the group, "Why are you talking about having no bread?  Do you still not see or understand?  Are your hearts hardened?  Do you have eyes but fail to see, and ears but fail to hear?  And don't you remember?  When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many basketfuls of pieces did you pick up?"

Then the people replied that they had seen and had picked up the remnants of bread after everyone had eaten their fill, and this was after Jesus simply and miraculously multiplied what little food there was in the first place!

It's hard to imagine the disciples experiencing something as eye-catching as that and then to find themselves in exactly the same situation and no one even suggested the possibility that Jesus might be an option again--a way through which a situation might change and yet their eyes didn't see the possibilities.

Well, I'd like to say that I am very different from those disciples, that I can see clearly Jesus in my everyday life and the possibilities and options that He provides for His children, but if I'm honest, I am more like the one who is driving down the road and simply cannot see that deer that is so plainly in view----I just needed the eyes to see. . . .

But again, my hope does not rest in my abilities to perceive, or the sharpness of my mind, or even the extent of my experiences, my hope rests in Jesus.  He promises to walk with me and help me to perceive important things that are simply foreign to me, and just like those disciples, He is all about helping us to learn what it means to live with a Kingdom mindset.  Thank God that He is for us and not against us!  We are in good hands. 

Oh, and by the way, even though the disciples were a little slow in their perception, the miracle still happened.  Jesus still fed all those people and were satisfied.

I have a sneaking suspicion that He is still about His business today. . . .can you see it?

BT