Seeing the blind
How do you react when you see a blind man tapping his way through the obstacles of daily living? Do you empathize with him? Do you want to assist him in his struggle? Empathy is pity mingled with love. It sees the blind man and cares that he may stumble or walk into something that could injure him.
The blind are free from a familiarity that can be a curse for those of us who can see. We often take light, color, and beauty for granted—as though sight is our right.
I have interviewed blind people, and the first question I’ve asked them is to describe the color blue. One young lady said that it was a very sad color, because “people get the blues.” It broke my heart that she would go through life never seeing the amazing spectacle of a blue sky.
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Most of us barely give it a second glance. We may think that it is better than dull and dreary clouds, but we should be in awe at blue’s breathtaking beauty. Its majesty should immediately cause us to glorify God. The Bible says that the heavens “declare” the glory of God (see Psalm 19:1), but we hardly hear a whisper because sin has made us dull of hearing.
It would, therefore, do us good to wear a blindfold for a day. That would not only help us to empathize with the blind, but it would make us appreciate the fact that we can see.
Our eyes are amazing. They not only see, but they can let others see. In a split second they reveal love, pain, pity, or fear. They are the visible light to the invisible soul.
While human facial expressions work with our eyes to express these emotions, if we look into the eyes of a dog—whose face is nothing but a forest of fur—we can see emotions that are solely revealed in his eyes. The miracles of eyes in a million creatures on the earth and in the seas are not the result of a random explosion in space. Atheism is not only foolish, it’s contemptuous. Every atheist who exists is a testament to the mercy of God. If He were not merciful, the sword of His Justice would rightly fall like lightning upon such ingratitude for the gift of life.
May you and I never take life or sight for granted. And may empathy give us a zeal for the lost. May the love of God cause us to weep for this blind world as it stumbles through life. Sinners have no idea of where they are heading—that without the mercy of God in Christ, they are going to eventually stumble into Hell. May we run to them and guide them to the light, and at the same time, may that love help me to appreciate my own salvation, knowing that I was once blind but now I see.
Ray Comfort is the Founder and CEO of Living Waters and the bestselling author of more than 80 books, including God Has a Wonderful Plan for Your Life, How to Know God Exists, and The Evidence Bible. He cohosts the award-winning television program “Way of the Master,” seen in almost 200 countries, and is the Executive Producer of “180,” “Evolution vs. God,” “Audacity,” and other films. He is married to Sue and has three grown children, and hasn’t left the house without gospel tracts for decades. You can learn more about his ministry at LivingWaters.com.
