Open Eyes

Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others -- the armies of heaven -- praising God...Luke 1:13 NLT

Upon the birth of Jesus in the manger at Bethlehem, Luke paints a beautiful picture of the heavens opening up over a field of shepherds and armies of angels singing praises to God.

The scene described reminded me immediately of the Chris Tomlin God of Angel Armies song, probably because I just saw him in concert and the testimony he gave just before he sang that song has lingered in my heart and mind.

His song was inspired by the account of Elisha and his servant in 2 Kings 6, when a vast army of men was headed to capture Elisha and his servant was terrified. Elisha prayed that God would open his servant's eyes that he might see.

God did just that. And the young man, with eyes opened by God, saw that the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

The servant of Elisha and the shepherds in the field on the night of Jesus' birth had their eyes opened to the spiritual in an awe-inspiring way.

They saw a sight more extraordinary than we could possibly imagine. More magnificent than we may ever see in our earthly lives.

They saw the angel armies.

Christ Tomlin testified that he had begun to pray that God would open his own eyes in like fashion. That God would allow him to see the bigger spiritual picture around him. To glimpse God and His plan instead of seeing the difficult and trying circumstances of life.

Imagining the shepherds in the field watching as the heavens opened up and the angel armies appeared singing praises to God at the birth of Jesus inspires me to pray the same prayer.

Lord, open MY eyes to the spiritual.

To the battles that are being fought.

To the victories that are being won.

To the intercession that needs to be accomplished.

To the bigger spiritual picture.

Lord, enable me to see the angel armies, if only in my mind's eye.

Even eyes opened by the hand of God, may not see the angel armies as the shepherds did, or as Elisha's servant did. In all their magnificent splendor. In living color.

Open eyes may simply see the salvation of God in everyday life.

In the same chapter of the book of Luke there were two others who saw something extraordinary.

But, they saw it in the seemingly ordinary.

A righteous and devout man named Simeon and a prophetess named Anna encountered the baby Jesus in the temple at Jerusalem where Mary and Joseph had taken Him to be offered to God.

Simeon and Anna saw no angels.

They heard no trumpets or heavenly choir. There was no fanfare that day. Just a small child in humble attire. But they knew who Jesus was. They had been watching for Him. Waiting for Him. And they saw Him.

They saw the extraordinary in Him.

They saw God's salvation for His people. And they proclaimed it. Loudly.

Simeon began to prophesy about the baby Jesus, and scripture says that Anna talked about the child to everyone who had been waiting expectantly for God to rescue Jerusalem.

Simeon and Anna saw God's salvation that day because they, like those they were so eager to share their news with, had been waiting expectantly for it.

They were looking, with eyes wide open, for God's salvation in the midst of their everyday lives.

Simeon and Anna witnessed the glory of God in the seemingly mundane. They witnessed the salvation of God in the everyday. They saw something in the temple that day that wasn't visible to everyone else.

Because their eyes were open. They were looking for God. They were watching and waiting.

Perhaps they too had prayed that God would open their eyes...

We don't have to see angels in the sky to see God in our lives.

We just have to watch.

With open eyes.

And pray.

Lord open my eyes to see You, and Your plan in my everyday life.

I would love to see the skies split open and an army of angels singing praises to God. I would love to behold everything that has breath singing praises to God, and I know that I will one day. But, for today, I would be just as satisfied to see God in the seemingly ordinary.

To glance at the eastern sky and see a faint rainbow glimmering in a sea of blue and know in my heart that God, Himself, painted the sky just to lift my weary heart today.

To meet the stranger in the grocery store who's having a rough day and see that the God of heaven's armies put her in my path so that I could speak simple words of encouragement over her and pray for her.

To pour my own heart out into a vast expanse of the Internet and imagine that my words spoke to just one soul today and helped them see God in their life.

To see the extraordinary in the everyday.

Open my eyes Lord.

Enable me to see the bigger picture.

To see Your plan.

To see You in my life today.

That is the gift of faith in me.

(Journey: Matthew 1:18-25; Luke 2:1-40)