FROM THE PULPIT: ARE YOU NEARSIGHTED?

I had an eye appointment a couple of weeks ago. I had been noticing the past couple of years that the small towns and highways in the road atlas were being printed with smaller type and blurrier ink. My faithful wife pointed out that it could be that my eyes, not the print had changed. So I went in for the exam. Sure enough, the optometrist told me that although I was "seven clicks away" from being nearsighted (on his testing machine) I was only "one click away" now. In short, my eyes are aging and becoming less able to focus clearly.

Our human tendency as we go through life is to grow spiritually nearsighted. Sin, which is so much a part of us, makes us want to turn inward., to focus on ourselves. Thomas a' Kempis, in his classic, The Imitation of Christ, observes, "If each year we would root out one fault, we should soon become perfect. But alas, the opposite is often the case, that we were better and purer in the beginning of our conversion than after many years of profession. Our zeal and virtue should grow daily; but it is now held to be a fine thing if a man retains even a little of his first fervor." ('Kempis, Book 1, chapter 2))

Lack of prayer drains us of spiritual power, lack of the Word of God takes away our vision. Oh, if only we would avoid these simple deficiencies! We take vitamins to correct dietary deficiencies, but remain content with anemic dosages of prayer and Bible reading.

Make the Bible a part of your daily life. Read it, study it, meditate upon it, memorize it. We simply cannot grow without God's Word in our life. "These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home, and when you walk on the road, when you lie down and when you get up." (Deuteronomy 6:6-7) That's all the time! St. Augustine once said, "To be ignorant of the Word is to be ignorant of Christ." In the New Testament Philippians 4:89 instructs us to dwell on positive things, things such as are found in the Bible. And we are promised the God of peace will be with us.

Then, when we read it, don't stop there. Make sure and follow its advice. Jesus said, "The one who obeys my word is the one who loves me." (John 14:21) Jesus compared the people who hear (or read!) God's Word and don't obey it to a builder who built a house on a shaky foundation. But whoever hears and obeys is like a wise builder who builds on a firm foundation. (Matthew 7:24-27) A life not built upon God's Word will collapse in the day of trouble.

We are instructed to "pray without ceasing." (1 Thessalonians 5:17) Jesus gave us such an example, he often withdrew to lonely places where he would pray. (Luke 5:16) Prayer is our lifeline with God. We can speak and listen to each other, we can send letters, e-mails, faxes, phone calls. Prayer is communicating with God. It's not the next best thing to being there, it is being in God's presence.

The person who does these things cannot remain spiritually short-sighted. Such a one will be a person of vision, of faith, of power, of the Holy Spirit. May we aspire to such a life!