“…this work came about so that God’s works might be displayed in him.”
[John 9:3]
Since January 1st, I’ve been reading the book of John. I wanted to read the words of Jesus; I wanted to hear Him clearly.
I don’t know if you’ve ever felt like this before — like you needed to get still and get close to God to know exactly what to do next. I’ve been feeling like that a lot lately.
The new year was a perfect time to shut out some of the static noise (music on my drive to work, excessive use of social media and pointless online searches) and plug my ears with the Word. So, when I read through John chapter 9, I felt the Holy Spirit tug at me.
By this time in scripture, Jesus is working the nerves of some of the religious leaders who are Jews. They are resisting His teaching and have convinced themselves that Jesus is not of God nor from Him. Jesus then sneaks in and out of the His accuser’s presence to continue teaching the Word of God to those who were believing.
Chapter 9 opens with Jesus passing by a blind man. I could unpack the small verse which reads, “As He passed by, He saw a man blind from birth”. I’ll save that for another devotional. I just want to touch on this small, yet profound concept: Jesus sees the condition of the man as He walks by. How often do we walk by our teary eyed co-workers in the hallway, a woman juggling children who weep through the aisles of Stop and Shop or a shy woman at church who has just come into the midst of the assembly? I hope we, like Jesus, notice the condition of everyone we pass.
The chapter continues and we find the disciples questioning why the man is blind. Maybe we think this when we see someone afflicted, hurt or struggling. We jump to conclusions with ourselves as well, always seeking to pinpoint the moment we sinned because surely that’s the reason things are going wrong in our lives. With God, it isn’t always as simple as that. Jesus reminds us that the reason the man is ill is NOT because of his sin or his parent’s sinned. The blind man was in this condition so that God’s glory could be displayed in him.
That was the Word I needed and I’m so glad God pressed it into my heart. We struggle because this is a fallen world where the devil throws lies, death and dysfunction, but God is always looking to shine His glory through the cracks of broken human beings like you and me.
Are you lacking something today that keeps you from feeling whole? If so, Jesus notices it. He sees you. Can we become women who step away from self-made perfection and allow Jesus to heal us and make us whole in Him? Can we allow our brokenness to be the place where God illuminates us so our families, our children, our bosses and our community can see Him clearly?
I pray we answer “yes”…for it is THIS type of woman that the Lord will praise.
#tobepraised