You Can See it in the Eyes

Can I just be honest for a moment?  Good, thanks!  Honestly, I feel like poo.  Yesterday afternoon I started feeling bad, and after some sleep and several doses of cold medicine, I still feel like poo.  I feel like I have plugs in my ears, a faucet running in my nose, and a large elephant sitting on my head.  I’m pretty sure I have springtime cold.  Not fun.

As a child I would get sick from time to time, and then as a teenager I would get “sick” from time to time.  You know, the “sick” where I didn’t want to go to school or church or do homework or whatever it was.  I would get “sick” so I could get out of it!  Come on, I know you all did this too!  Anyway, 9 times out of 10 my mom would know I was faking, and I never could figure out how she knew.  It always blew my mind; maybe she really did know everything.  However, as I grew up and started teaching and working with children, I found her secret.  You can see it in their eyes.  

The eyes tell a whole lot about a person.  Eyes show emotion, interest, fear and most importantly, sickness.  Now, if you have encountered this, you understand where I’m coming from.  When someone truly feels bad, you can see it in his or her eyes.  It is like there is a sickly heaviness to them, and you can just see that they feel bad.   My mom can look into my eyes and know if I am sick or not.  I don’t even have to say that I feel bad, and she knows! 

 I was thinking about that this morning as I was getting ready for work.  I looked in the mirror and saw my eyes, and they had that look.  I got tickled because the first thought I had was how if my mom were here she would say that I look like I feel bad.  As I was getting ready, I was reflecting on this Easter weekend that we have just celebrated.  Then, I thought about Mary and how she looked at Jesus.  Could you imagine what she was thinking when she looked into the eyes of Jesus as He was hanging on the cross?  It blows my mind.  It pains me just to think about it.  Her son had done nothing wrong, but yet He was carrying all the sins of the world on His shoulders.  He was taking our punishment so we do not have to.  We might not have been there in person, but our sins were. 

I’m sure that as Mary looked into His eyes, she saw the pain He was carrying.  She saw Him struggling to find the words to speak.  She saw Him longing for relief.  However, I think she saw grace and mercy.  She saw forgiveness that no one else could ever give.  She saw a new life.  We too can see these things.

Jesus bore our burdens, sins and shame and took them to the cross so that we might be forgiven.  Our sins can be erased and thrown as far as the east is from the west.  You see, when we accept Jesus and this forgiveness, Jesus’ eyes tell it all.  With His eyes He does not see a dirty sinner that put Him through so much pain and agony, but He sees a forgiven, loved child.  He sees someone with unlimited potential who can do BIG things for Him.  Unfortunately, time after time we fail Him and do the wrong things.  I am not positive, but I think that this pains the eyes of Jesus when He has to see us do these things. 

My challenge to myself and to you is simple.  #1 - Know that the eyes of Jesus do not look at you as a lost cause or a big mess up.  They look at you with grace, forgiveness and love.  #2 - Live your life so that everything you do will bring joy to the eyes of Christ.  Eyes tell it all. May the eyes of Jesus show nothing but pure joy for the things His children are doing.