Read: Mark 8:22-26

Then Jesus laid his hands on his eyes again; and he opened his eyes, and his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly. (v. 25)

How observant are you? On a stoplight, which color is on top—red or green? When water in your sink goes down the drain, does it swirl clockwise or counter clockwise? How many matches are there in a standard pack? Sometimes the things with which we are most familiar are the very things we have most difficulty seeing.

Despite decades of reading and studying the Bible, I keep discovering things that I hadn’t noticed before. Only recently did it occur to me that to heal the blind man of Bethsaida, Jesus had to touch him twice. The Gospels record over 30 healing miracles Jesus performed, and in all those miracles one touch was enough. But in this instance healing requires a second touch. This is a two-stage miracle, and Mark doesn’t give us any clue as to why.

This miracle suggests that while our conversion may be instantaneous, our comprehension of what God has done for us and our appreciation of what it means to be a Christian usually happen in stages. For example, sometimes it takes a second touch for us to see other people as the children of God that they truly are. Like the blind man after Jesus’ first touch, who sees people, “but they look like trees walking,” we see other people as things, commodities, customers, but not as God’s beloved children. Sometimes we, too, need a second touch.

Prayer:

Lord, help me to see others as your beloved children.

https://woh.org/