Quick question. Has anyone tried to go anywhere with your eyes closed? How far did you get? How many times did you run into the wall or counter?"For we walk by faith, not by sight." (2 Corinthians 5:7)
Maybe, if you tried it at home where you are familiar with your surroundings, just maybe you got from your bedroom to the kitchen. Maybe. But how would you have done if it had been in a house you'd never been in? What if it had been in a huge corn maze? Not so easy, is it?
A lot of times, we read this verse and see that "not by sight" bit and wonder whether we are ever going to be able to close our eyes and let go of our control over our lives. After all, our lives often feel a little like a giant corn maze with infinite twists and turns, with walls too high to see over, and no ability to retrace our steps. It's hard enough with our eyes open, isn't it? How could we possibly navigate with our eyes shut!
But here's what we forget: "by faith". Does anyone really and totally grasp what that means? I know I can't. However, I can guess.
In the corn maze example, all I said to imagine was to close your eyes and try to find your way through. I didn't include the rest of the scenario: once you close your eyes, the creator of the corn maze will come and take your hand and guide you through the best paths, helping you through the slick muddy spots and keeping you from getting lost in an endless loop until he finally leads you home.
"That sure sounds nice," you might think, "but I'm too afraid that if I close my eyes he will take me somewhere I don't want to go and then if something goes wrong I will have lost control."
Even if you don't think that, I do. I like to have control. I want to make sure it is done right. I barely let someone do my hair for me! It's hard to let go. I'll let go of the things I can't control anyway, but everything else...just don't touch it!
But here's the thing: I have never had control over anything. I like to think I do. I like to act like I do. But ultimately, I don't have any more control over my next breath than I do over the weather in Australia.
I want to use this blog to explore living by faith and not by sight in practical ways. But by practical I also mean radical. Because the Christian life is radically different from the life the world expects us to live. Learning to live this way will be a life-long journey, and I know I won't be there anytime soon. But I want to start now.
Will you join me?
