Who could have predicted we would be HERE? Who could have seen this coming? More and more confirmed cases of COVID-19. Flights being turned away from NYC. Travel bans to Europe. States encouraging people not to leave. Restaurants, movie theaters, bars, and all kinds of businesses closing, laying off workers, the stock market going nuts. These are indeed uncertain and strange times that are playing on our fears and anxiety for good reason. We cannot see what tomorrow will bring.
In the gospel reading for this fourth Sunday in Lent, Jesus and the disciples are walking along and Jesus sees a man blind from birth. The disciples wondering about who caused the blindness the sin of the parents or the sins of the man himself. Jesus replies, “It wasn’t the parents or the man. The man was born blind so that God’s work might be revealed in him.” Then Jesus goes about doing the work his Father has given him to do while still on earth. He spits on the ground adding moisture to the dirt making mud to spread on the man’s eyes. Then Jesus gives the man something to do himself; he tells him to go wash in a certain pool of water. Sure enough Jesus’ actions combined with the man’s actions lead to his ability to see.
The people in his town ask the man who was once a beggar, “How in the world are you able to see now?” Some of them think it must be another person who looks like the beggar. The people take the man to the Pharisees who take mental note that Jesus has been breaking the rules again- curing on the sabbath. The Pharisees question the man about how it is he came to see. The man tells them quite simply, “He put mud on my eyes. Then I washed, and now I see.” He did something, I did something. And, now something is new.
Some of the Pharisees believe the man and some do not. The scripture says they were divided. What do they do? They seek more proof. They go to the man’s parents wanting to make sure that this man is indeed the man who was previously blind from birth. The parents confirm that this is their son and he was indeed blind from birth, and then they throw the ball back into their son’s court saying he can speak for himself about how it is he can now see.
I love this next part. The leaders go back to the man and question him again. They paint him in a corner and say, “‘Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner.’” So, if the man says Jesus healed him, he is wrong because the leaders say he is a sinner and sinners cannot heal. If he says Jesus didn’t heal him, he likely will not be able to live with himself because he is lying. So what does he do? He bobs and weaves. He weaves around the sinner part saying “I do not know whether he is a sinner.” True. How could he know that? The he bobs; what he can do is testify to the truth as he knows it and has experienced it. “One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.”
The leaders then want him to tell the story all over again. The lean in and ask more of the same questions:“So, what exactly did he do? How did he open your eyes?” What is so marvelous about this story is that the blind man who can now see is teaching by example to the Pharisees what they cannot see or experience about Jesus. And, isn’t that all of us?
The Pharisees cannot bear to be called out on their own blindness, so what do they do? They turn on the man. They make him as wrong as wrong can be. They shame him saying, “You were born entirely in sins, and are you trying to teach us?” So they throw him out, cast him out of belonging, deeming him unworthy of their love and certainly of belonging within their circle.
Jesus finds and goes to the man and reveals his identity to him. “You have seen the Son of Man, and the one speaking with you is he.” With his open eyes and now an incredibly open heart, the man says, “Lord, I believe.” and he worshiped him. Jesus follows up by saying. “I came into this world for judgment so that those who do not see may see, and those who do see may become blind.” The Pharisees turn to each other and share, “Surely we are not blind, are we?”
So many layers of blindness in this story. The physical blindness of the man who was born blind so that God’s work might be revealed. The blindness of of the Pharisees who cannot see the truth of who Jesus is in other people’s lives and therefore cannot see the potential power for their own lives. The man not only gaining his physical sight but also opening the eyes of his heart to the identity of the Son of Man, believing and worshiping him. The defensiveness of the Pharisees when they start to have a nagging feeling that maybe there is something they are missing, something they cannot see. It’s scary to not be able to see clearly what is right in front of us, what tomorrow holds, or where are security truly lies.
One of the greatest hymns that most people know and are consistently moved by is Amazing Grace. There is a verse that moves many: “I once was lost, but now am found. T’was blind but now I see.” I think so many of us resonate with this hymn and these words in particular because it pulls for a truth deep within us that is often hard to acknowledge in our everyday lives, and yet when we do sing this verse and the tears roll down our cheeks it sets something free within us.
It is vulnerable to admit we have been lost in life. It’s vulnerable to acknowledge on any level that we’ve been blind, that we haven’t been able to see clearly aspects of our lives or even like the Pharisees clearly see what holds the potential to heals us. And, so the tears roll down our cheeks baptizing, providing a sacrament that acknowledges somewhere within us a truth that needs to be seen, honored, respected, and maybe most importantly blessed and healed by a loving God.
It is only a loving God who can truly find us and bring us home, weaving us unlost. Only a loving God can make us unblind and give us the power to see. It’s often not as simple a formula as spit, dirt, apply, wash. And, yet showing up to the possibility of God’s healing, growing our capacity to see can be simple with God’s help. My dear friend Jehanne reminded me this week that this was a two part healing- Jesus made and applied the mud AND the man followed the instructions to go and wash. God did something; the man did something. And, something new happened. When we are committed to seeing clearly in our lives (the good and the bad, the things we want to see and the things we don’t), when we allow ourselves to truly see life on reality’s terms, something shifts. By the grace of God we are set free to live empowered by a loving God engaging with life in a way that doesn’t resist but rather harnesses the flow of the Holy Spirit in life so that we can keep doing the next right thing in peace and gratitude.
We may not want to see COVID-19 on the news or in our communities. It may be incredibly painful to be with those who are in such a heightened state of fear and anxiety. It may be scary to go to bed at night not sure what the news will be tomorrow. And, and, and, as people of faith we are to wake up each morning and trust God is doing God’s part and we are to do ours. God does something. We do something, and something new happens. God is still making making the mud; will we allow God to place the mud on our eyes? Will we take the time to wash? What does this metaphor even look like in today’s times?
It likely looks different for everyone chooses to engage the water. For me it looks like not mistaking myself or anyone else or any situation for God. It looks like trusting God to be God, show up, and be with us in and through this messy time. It looks like making time each day to connect to that loving and gracious God through prayer and meditation. It looks like staying in prayer and meditation long enough to have some peace to offer someone else whether that be someone in my house or on the other side of the phone or Zoom. It looks like when I slip back into fear and anxiety and I loose the capacity to see God before me, I close my eyes again and breathe. It looks like intentionally opening my eyes and clearly looking for God anew and offering thanks for all the teeny tiny and big ways I can see God in my midst remembering it is vulnerable to see God at work in the midst of scary times. Being in touch with my own vulnerability or someone else’s may even make a tear roll down my cheek.
Seeing and keeping a sense of calm is a spiritual discipline. In crazy and unusual, scary times it can be incredibly tempting to fall asleep, to give ourselves the out to not see the fears and anxiety within ourselves or those around us. By all means- take breaks, friends! Being with hard times, looking them in the eye and staying awake can be hard, hard work. So, please rest and sleep. And, come back. Re-awaken to God’s love within you and in your midst, even in these strange and unusual times, especially in these strange and unusual times. God is here. May we have eyes to see… even now… especially now. Amen.
You can listen to this podcast episode Eyes to See here.
You can find Mindful Morning Prayer here.
You can find Mindful Prayers @ Noonish here.
You can find Mindful Prayers @ The Close of Day here.