My oldest daughter was struggling to read. It was puzzling to me because she was so smart. She could recite her alphabet before she was three and recognized all of the letters and their sounds by age four. But, at age six and in first grade, she was falling behind. I am a huge proponent of homeschooling but yet it made me wonder if somehow I was failing her in the one area I wanted her to love. Perhaps a more qualified teacher would better know how to help her. I despised the daily struggles to get her to read and write. Rewards weren’t working. Threatening certainly wasn’t. We were both frustrated.
I was relating my disappointment to my best friend, a homeschooling mother of 8, hoping she had some fresh ideas for me. Her answer was to have my daughter’s eyes checked as this is the main reason for reading issues. While this thought had occurred to me, I hadn’t followed up because there had never been any complaints from her. Off to the doctor we went. She was diagnosed as being farsighted and having focusing difficulties. She could count the leaves on the trees across the street but couldn’t bring the words of a page into alignment. Fortunately, glasses would correct the problems within a short time as she grew out of it. Within a few weeks of the new glasses, her improvement was remarkable. Schooling was easier for her and she began to thrive. Why? Because she could see!
In Matthew 13, Jesus is asked why he speaks in parables. His answer is interesting.
Matthew 13:13-16 This is why I speak to them in parables: “Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand. In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: “You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.” But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. (NIV)
How many times have we tried so hard to focus on something and yet, it never came into a clear view? Perhaps God isn’t ready to reveal His truth to you at that moment but possibly, it is because we haven’t asked God for the answer. Other times, we see things clearly but don’t accept them as reality because we don’t want to take responsibility for the truth. Maybe we are wearing “rose colored glasses.”
Take a few minutes to ask God to help you see things clearly in your life. Whether it be a situation or relationship you are involved in or behavior patterns that need changed, God can give you the glasses you need to improve your vision.
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