I love how nature surprises us with beauty. Actually, the beauty is there all along, the surprise happens when we pause long enough to recognize it. Like today, while sitting at the park with my family, I looked up and discovered a tree crowned in white blossoms and fresh green leaves. Spectacular!

This reminds me of Jesus’ words,

“Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are generous*, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are stingy*, your body also is full of darkness. See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness.” (Luke 11:34)

Between blossoms and leaves.

I was at a retreat recently where we discussed this passage. Josh Pinkston, who co-led the retreat, helped us to understand that the condition of our eyes has less to do with who/what we are looking at than it does with how we are seeing them. When we look at someone, what do we see, that which divides us or brings us together? This is true with family and friends, people that cross our path, and even God.

When I arrived at the retreat, I realized that the prayer I was carrying on my heart was the refrain of a popular song that goes like this, “Say something. I’m giving up on you.” I won’t go into all the details as to why this was my prayer, but if prayer is talking to God, this is what I was communicating. (e.g.: Psalm 22:1-2)

It was after talking about Jesus words about the generous and stingy eyes, that I realized God had been talking to me all day long through the voices of those around me. If I was not able to see God in them, then the light of my eyes would have truly been darkness, because I would have stayed in the darkness of my initial prayer.

God’s movement is always toward light and life, even if it means walking with us through the darkness. Just as I was surprised today at the beautiful sight of a tree transitioning from blossom to leaf, I was even more surprised at the astounding beauty of God’s love through the people God had placed around me. All it took was a generous eye.

Grace and peace,
Brook

* The Greek for healthy here implies generous. The Greek for unhealthy here implies stingy. (Luke 11:34 NIV Notes)

Also published on Medium.