By Derek Maul
Jesus knew what they were saying, so he said, “Why are you arguing about having no bread? Don’t you know or understand even yet? Are your hearts too hard to take it in? ‘You have eyes—can’t you see? You have ears—can’t you hear?’ Don’t you remember anything at all?” – Mark 8:17-18
I enjoy walking my neighborhood in the early morning when the mist hangs onto the trees, mutes the view, blankets the sounds of the day, and keeps the temperature down. Later, when it lifts, the sunlight floods in and everything is different in an instant.
When the mist is still there, there’s a dimension of vision it’s easy to miss later, when the sun blazes and the shadows become so deep. In certain ways, I see more when the colors are muted and the light is more evenly diffused.
This morning’s walk made me think about clarity. Jesus said the following things repeatedly and in various ways during his ministry:
1. “Would you people open your eyes just a little bit for crying out loud!”
2. “Hello? Is anybody home? Have the 12 of you forgotten to put your listening ears on this morning?”
3. “Duh!”
Well I’m not absolutely sure about that last one, but I am one hundred percent certain Jesus would have said “duh” had the word – or it’s Aramaic equivalent – been invented two thousand years ago.
Peering through the mist is a lot like regular life. It’s fun to be in church in the flood of light, to fellowship with companions on the journey, to listen to inspirational messages and enjoy beautiful music. But it’s in my day-by-day walk that I tend to stop for more intimate conversations with Jesus, and it’s in the challenge of peering closely into the fog to see more clearly that I often do.
The key to clarity is not just open eyes, but sometimes new eyes.
I guess that makes one more for the list – #4 from Jesus: “Come on, people! Don’t you remember anything at all?”
It’s a valid question – DEREK
