He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears. (Isa. 11:3)
Jessica was devastated when her cat died unexpectedly, so her parents took her to an animal shelter so they could rescue a cat. Jessica immediately spotted an adorable black kitten, but the one right next to it had a damaged eye and curiously tilted head. The attendant explained that the cat’s eye was mostly white because it had suffered a severe eye infection and he tilted his head to compensate for his poor vision. The girl knew she could only take one, so she chose the cute black kitten.
As the family prepared to leave, the attendant referred to the black kitten. “She’s really going to miss her brother, they’ve never been separated.” The parents looked at the striped kitten, with its tilted head and damaged eye and suspected that he would end up being euthanized. They never intended to take two cats home that day, but they also could not bear the thought of him being put to sleep.
Doing the right or decent thing isn’t always convenient. It often costs us more in another area of life. When God sent his only Son to earth, in the form of a baby boy, it wasn’t convenient for Mary and Joseph. But God helped them see beyond their circumstances to embrace a spiritual reality that far outweighed human wisdom—and he can do the same for us.
Pray to see with eyes of righteousness.
Angela Golden Bryan is a graduate of Wesley Seminary at IWU. Three of her top spiritual gifts are encouragement, service, and compassion. She and her husband live in south Florida and enjoy visits from their two adult children.
© 2020 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.
