The Layman’s View

Grace and peace be with you brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus!

As most of you know, I have been blessed to have six beautiful grandchildren. I bring this up because I want to share a view that I have taken on this journey in my life. When I look into the eyes of these beautiful children and see the wonder, awe and amazement they experience, it makes me feel so joyous. I am so moved to see what they see through their eyes and to experience what they do as if I am seeing it for the first time also! Their eyes light up as they see new things, their eyes really and truly sparkle as they turn and look at their Papa! As they go through this process I go through it too as a new and exciting way of seeing things.

In this vein, I thought about how I can look at things differently so that I may view them as if for the first time also. We are always told that God is there with us, always. Right beside us looking at us, watching us and experiencing things as we do. Now imagine if you will, riding in your car on a trip or an errand and having Jesus sitting right there in the passenger seat. How might we behave differently if we knew He was right there watching us as we drove down the road experiencing all the things we see on our journey? I certainly have seen my share of crazy drivers tailgating, cutting off vehicles, or going too fast or too slow. Honestly, sometimes it really gets to me. But if Jesus was there, then how would I react? I know if He was there, visible, I would certainly restrain myself and try to look at things in a different light for sure! He is truly there with us always and He sees the things we do but in a different sort of light. I’m sure He would tell me that we are to love our neighbors and not be so quick to judge them, just as we ask God to forgive us.

When my grandchildren look at me, I see the love in their eyes and the unconditional love that God gives us through Jesus, no matter what ills befall us. A child doesn’t see our faults and just accepts and loves us and looks for that same love in return. God also looks at us with that very same unconditional love and asks that we do the same for all of mankind. We are to see things as if we are children seeing things for the first time, loving one another and sharing His love and teachings as He commanded through Jesus.

I’ve set a new goal for my life; to see things in a new light, as if through the eyes of a child, as God sees us. Jesus once asked His disciples to let a bunch of children come to Him “for such is the kingdom of God”. If we all hope to enter into the kingdom, maybe we need to open our eyes to a new perspective. Open our hearts to love and forgive, and to share our love for God with each other and be His disciples in Christ Jesus. God bless us all!

~ Ron Johnson