We must ask ourselves this fundamental question: do we want to see as God sees? Common sense tells us that God’s sight is preferable to any other mode of seeing, because God’s seeing is absolute reality. How does God see? For the sake of brevity, God’s seeing always abounds in hope, faith in the future, and loving, intelligent progress. Today’s Gospel from Mark 1-:46-52, wherein a blind man comes to Jesus seeking the gift of sight, clearly illustrates how God sees.
“As Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a sizable crowd,
Bartimaeus, a blind man, sat by the roadside begging. On hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, ‘Jesus, son of David, have pity on me.’ And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he kept calling out all the more, ‘Son of David, have pity on me.’ Jesus stopped and said, ‘Call him.’ So they called the blind man, saying to him, ‘Take courage; get up, Jesus is calling you.’ He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus. Jesus said to him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ The blind man replied to him, ‘Master, I want to see.’ Jesus told him, ‘Go your way; your faith has saved you.’ Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus on the way.’”
Despite his present circumstances and the negativity of those around him, this blind man had faith in God and in the future. With Jesus’ help, he was willing to re-dream his future, and because he was willing, he was able to enter into God’s vision for his life. This is my point: a terrible spirit of negativity is haunting planet earth. Whether it’s climate change, Covid, or social divisiveness, people are tempted to buy into a catastrophic vision of the future. The fruit of this apocalyptic vision is an epidemic of depression and anxiety, most especially in our young people. I say, stop it. Now is the time to re-dream life on planet earth.
I am not naïve. We are indeed living in an historical cycle that is filled with chaos which borders on anarchy. Our challenges are great. But this is not the time to succumb to a spirit of fear and despair. Like the blind man in the gospel story, we must aspire to see as God as God sees with steadfast determination. Day after day, we have to present our desire to see to God and guru. And most importantly, we must be willing to let go of the fear, anxiety, and negativity that blinds us to God‘s vision of a new heaven and a new earth. We must allow God to re-dream life on planet earth through us. Meditate on the wise words of the great guru, Lahiri Mahasaya:
“Solve all your problems through meditation. Exchange unprofitable religious speculations for actual God-contact. Clear your mind of dogmatic theological debris; let in the fresh, healing waters of direct perception. Attune yourself to the active inner Guidance; the Divine Voice has the answer to every dilemma of life. Though man’s ingenuity for getting himself into trouble appears to be endless, the Infinite Succor is no less resourceful.”
Lord Jesus, Master Yogananda,
I want to see
As you see.
