The Blind Shall See

The Blind Shall See

When Jesus heard them, he stopped and called, “What do you want me to do for you?” “Lord,” they said, “we want to see!” Jesus felt sorry for them and touched their eyes. Instantly they could see! Then they followed him. Matthew 20:32-34

Too often, we think we see clearly when we really can’t see much at all. For one of my patients, it was the exact opposite. He was completely blind, but he had much better vision than most.

Looking at my list of rounds that morning, I saw that Herb was my first patient for the day. At 104, he was also one of my oldest and most resilient patients. I saw him every month, but he couldn’t see me. Macular degeneration had stolen his eyesight nearly twenty years earlier. He had no visual response to even the brightest of exam lights.

When I walked into his room that day, the air immediately seemed lighter and fresher, as if spring had arrived there before it reached the rest of the town. As I drew closer to Herb’s bedside, I noticed that he gripped a photo in each hand—one was of his wife, who had died ten years earlier, and the other was a group photo of his children.

The nurse was having trouble getting a systolic blood pressure reading above 90, and she asked me to listen to Herb’s heart. As I bent forward, I heard him exhale. Three heartbeats later, I heard him draw his final breath on earth. Immediately, I was aware that I stood on holy ground, and I was awed by the sacredness of the occasion.

As I thought of Herb’s final moments, I had to pause to catch my own breath. He had clung to two photos he could no longer see, while before his very eyes a world of immense clarity and color suddenly unfurled. The last things to pass through his hands were pictures of those he loved most dearly—those who had gone before him, and those who would come after him.

I immediately knew that the scents of lilac and citrus I had smelled upon entering his room were the aroma of heaven. And now Herb could see the heavens, the earth, and those he loved in all their glory.

TODAY’S RX

Pray that God would grant you to see the world through his eyes.

God, you’ve given me many gifts on this earth. Help me not to take them for granted but to see them as precious, and to make the most of my time with family and friends.