Pinholes

 by Macy Johnson

“If you love me,

you will obey what I command.”

(John 14:15 NIV)

 

Oswald Chambers wrote, “If I obey Jesus Christ in the haphazard circumstances, they become pinholes through which I see the face of God. The Redemption of God will rush through me to other lives, because behind the deed of obedience is the Reality of Almighty God.”

 

When my cataracts were removed, the surgeon inserted new, prescription lenses into my eyes. My dominant eye is corrected for distant vision and my other eye can focus at arm’s length, so I can read music on the piano sans spectacles. Unfortunately, I admit I still need low-power magnification lenses to read a book, a trivial inconvenience.

 

Every September my ophthalmologist checks the vision in my non-dominant eye with a pinhole occluder. This opaque disk covered in tiny holes allows only a fraction of light to enter my eye. This increases the depth of focus and temporarily corrects errors by reducing the “blur circle” in the retina. 

 

Have you ever wondered why squinting helps you focus on objects? Your eyelashes create multiple tiny pinholes and momentarily improve your vision when you squint.

 

I need pinholes to see more clearly with my left eye and my whole heart. When I obey Jesus in the mundane, mediocre situations, pinholes are created which allow me to see His face more clearly. The bright lights of supernatural distractions are pushed away and I can focus only on Jesus.

 

My service of love for my Savior is often disruptive to my schedule or painful to my ease. Then I remember that obedience blesses others. I squint my heart to bring what is important into clearer focus and deliberately block out distractions around me.

 

I will focus on submission out of love today so I can see God more clearly. I hope you will, too!