The way that you see

When I was a little girl I found people with glasses interesting.  I would ask why them wore them, and what things looked like if they took them off.  Once when I was quite small I remember literally pushing up close to another girl and imagining if I got my head right next to hers maybe I could see through her eyes - see what she was seeing.

That novelty has long worn off, since by the time I was 13 I was prescribed glasses of my own.  In fact Dean and I have a very similar prescription for our eye glasses.
But we see so differently, Dean and I.

When we used to grocery shop together I'd zoom up and down the aisles with my focus on my list in hand.  Dean would notice people who needed help reaching something, or someone that he knew from the community and would wave hello.  We would actually get into arguments over this.  Dean got embarrassed when I would get so single-minded that I literally drove into another lady's cart when careening around a corner.  I would get frustrated that he wasn't staying on task and helping me get this job done.  I saw my list and the amount of time I had to get it done, while Dean saw the people around us.

When we would go out together I would just see Dean.  I would want to hear what he had to say and watch his face.  I focused on him.  Dean would notice people coming in and out of the restaurant and wave to people or stop and chat with someone he knew.  

In many ways we've become more like one another in the last almost 2 decades together.  I am much more aware of the people God has put in my daily path - I try to see them as God sees them, and I ask Him if there's something I should say to someone.  And Dean is more goal-oriented, and now when we go out for dinner he pays more attention to us as a couple - to how we are connecting right then.

There is one area in which I'm so glad we see differently.  Very differently.
The way we see me.
I am blessed with a husband whose eyes see me as beautiful when I'm very often not.  
I don't have a problem with self-image...  seriously, I don't.  Some things are just facts: such as behavior can make you ugly, and there have been more times than I care to remember when Dean overlooked my bad attitude and impatience and chose to see the beautiful things about me.  
And another fact:  head colds make you ugly - even if just temporarily.  But here I am 5 days into a nasty sinus cold and my nose is raw, my lips are dry and I've used up all the tissues and almost all the toilet paper in the house.  My voice sounds like a combination of James Earl Jones and Piglet on helium.  
I had just laid out my glass of water, my bottle of decongestant, my lip balm and jar of vicks beside my bed.  I was hoping to just get through the night still breathing.  My throat was dry because I couldn't breath through my nose at all, and so I huffed and puffed out of breath and finally plopped into bed.  
Then Dean comes into the room, sits down on the bed and says, "You're so pretty."
What?
But the way he says it, I know he means it.  
Many times my husband seems to see what God sees, even if it doesn't make sense in the natural.

Just like I was so curious about what people with glasses really saw, how their eyes worked, so I wonder how God sees.  Once in a while I kind of get a glimpse into what God really sees, and how different it is from what we see in the natural.
A couple years ago I had the privilege of being at a conference in Calgary.  We were given the option of touring the Calgary Pregnancy Crisis Centre - an faith-based organization that provides loving care for individuals affected by a crisis pregnancy. 

 Around 75 of us women signed up for this tour, and were bused there early one morning.  We were forced to park around the corner and walk a few blocks.  I looked around me at all these women, most in high heels or some sensible loafer.  They all looked fairly ordinary, middle-aged, and quite harmless.  I heard the giggle and chatter of of all these feminine voices, and the clatter and click of all their shoes on the sidewalk.  

What a picture we must make, I thought! 
Who could know that these ladies all worked with troubled pregnant girls and their families?  Who could tell the hearts of compassion and the strong spirits that lived within these individuals who fought for redemption and healing along with their clients?  
Skirts billowed in the light breeze, and manicured fingers stroked curls back into place as we hurried along.

Suddenly I felt like my view morphed into something completely different.  
I saw rows of trained warriors.  I heard the incredibly loud rhythmic thunder of boots marching in unison.  I felt these women carrying a power and authority.  I saw an intimidating army. 
It was only for a few seconds, but what a memorable moment!  It's whetted my appetite to see more of what God sees.  What's really going on?  Beyond the natural, beyond the cultural norms and habits and routines - what's the immoveable truth about a situation?

And so I've been so fascinated with this song lately.  It's SO good!

YOU SEE by Jonathan David Helser

  I see a mountain          You see a miracle

I see a wasteland          You see a garden 

I see dry bones             You see an army

I see impossible

You see everything

I see a seed                 You see a harvest

I see the water             You see the wine

I see the broken           You see your body

I see my enemy

You see your footstool

You are I Am, but I’ve

Been so blind all this time

My God touch me, I want

To see the way that you sse

I see my sins               You sin your blood

I see a baby                You see a saviour

I see my failures           You see redemption

I see a beggar

You see a son

I see my father            You see your son

I see a shepherd           You see your lamb

I see my saviour           You see your joy

I see your eyes

Staring at mine