February: “I Can Read My Bible Now.”
Some of the greatest gifts we have are those which we don’t talk about often. It’s not until they are gone that we fully understand the scope of those gifts - in their absence, their presence becomes illuminated. There are some gifts we live with everyday that many have never known, or those gifts might have been lost, or worse, taken. We aren’t guaranteed the ability to speak, walk, hear, or see. While these basic functions might not be considered gifts by many, there are those who long for even a taste of them. At various moments in his earthly ministry, Jesus comes across the blind, deaf, lame, and mute. When he encountered them, he healed them, he set them down a different path than they were on by offering forgiveness for sin.
The story of the blind man told in Mark 8 is particularly interesting given the nature of the healing. Jesus spits in the man’s eyes and he isn’t fully healed. It isn’t until Jesus places his hands on the man’s eyes for the second time, that his vision was restored. There has been debate among scholars as to why the man wasn’t healed the first time Jesus laid hands upon him. One major viewpoint is the nature of the disciple’s continuous need for correction; spiritual blindness plagues them and often requires redirecting. Here is how the story goes:
Mark 8:22-25
22 When they arrived at Bethsaida, some people brought a blind man to Jesus, and they begged him to touch the man and heal him. 23 Jesus took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village. Then, spitting on the man’s eyes, he laid his hands on him and asked, “Can you see anything now?”
24 The man looked around. “Yes,” he said, “I see people, but I can’t see them very clearly. They look like trees walking around.”
25 Then Jesus placed his hands on the man’s eyes again, and his eyes were opened. His sight was completely restored, and he could see everything clearly.
Several years ago I was with a mission team serving in Brazil. On this particular day we were going to visit one of the favelas, bringing with us a few basic medical supplies. We happened to have several pairs of glasses, which we had planned on handing out. After a few hours we didn’t have much luck with the glasses, until one of the translators recommended we make one more stop before heading back to the church. We didn’t walk far before reaching our destination - houses in favelas are typically stacked on top of one another, making home visitations efficient. It was a single lady, probably in her early sixties who lived alone. People in the favelas are incredibly welcoming and enjoy having guests in their homes, so we were invited in; offered water and food, which we politely declined. After talking with her for a few minutes (she didn’t speak any English so the translator did the communicating) we asked if she needed anything, as we showed her the medical supplies. One item caught her attention - eyeglasses. She mentioned she had been unable to enjoy one of her favorite hobbies for years, which was reading. She let us know her eyesight had rapidly worsened over the years and she couldn’t afford to do anything about it.
Determined to help, we began pulling various prescription eyeglasses from our bag, having her try them on. Miss after miss, we began to grow discouraged. Until, we handed her one pair to try on. A smile appeared on her face. She uttered something in Portuguese, which translated to “I can see!” One of the group handed her a Bible which had been sitting on a nearby table. We waited with anticipation. Would she be able to read again? A few seconds pass and she says, (translated to English) “I can read my Bible now.” Amen. None of us walked into the favela that day expecting for the blind to see again but as the saying goes, God works in mysterious ways. He certainly does. While it’s certainly not a miracle on par with what Jesus was doing in the 1st century. It does show how God is still using people to bring healing in the most unexpected and spectacular ways, even if it is through modern medicine.
