Walking on Stable Ground
It was summer and the daytime temperatures were stifling. Getting outside before the sun got too high in the sky was a priority. I got up just as the sun was beginning to rise. Putting on my gardening clothes and shoes, I ran my fingers through my hair and stumbled into the living room. Picking up my glasses and forcing myself into a semi-state of alertness, I crossed the kitchen floor to the back door.
Stumbling out of the door and down the stairs, I became aware that something was not right. The ground seemed to be moving under my feet. My head began to pound as I bent over to pick up the watering hose. I convinced myself it was nothing and continued through the back gate toward the garden at the side of the house.
Each step took added focus as I tried to place my feet on stable ground. I was having difficulty walking, difficulty focusing, and my head ached. As I stood at the edge of the garden with my hose aimed toward the thirsty plants, my neighbor walked over to chat for a few minutes. I tried to hold a conversation but was soon very aware that my right eye could not focus on her or my surroundings. It took every ounce of concentration not to fall over. I was becoming nauseous and a feeling of foreboding overtook me.
I explained that I did not feel well and excused myself. I quietly suspected I might be having a stroke. I made my way back to the hose reel, then stumbled through the kitchen door and into the house. Holding onto the furniture and walls to maintain my balance, I made my way to the hall bathroom and looked into the mirror. I expected to see evidence of a stroke or perhaps an injured eye.
What did I see? In my half awake, half asleep state, I had put on my husband's glasses. After replacing them with my own glasses, my eyes were able to focus on the world around me. I could walk straight, and the headache subsided.
It was a careless mistake on my part but one that became a valuable spiritual lesson.
There are times when I am taken back to that morning. Maybe you can relate. Have you ever found yourself looking at a situation through the eyes of the world? You feel ungrounded as if something isn't quite right. You keep trying to make sense out of it all, but you just can't focus? You know you are walking on the wrong path but you don't know how to correct your steps.
When you can take off the lens of the world and put on the lens of a Christian, you find that you are no longer stumbling around, unable to focus. You can firmly plant your feet and follow a path that leads you toward God. Do you wonder what that path is and how you can know if you are on the right track and wearing the right lens?
Gaining the right perspective means being familiar with God and His way of life. Studying His word and following the example of Jesus Christ is the only way to know that your feet are on solid ground.
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