6 years ago, I think to the week, I was having some vision problems. I had gotten new contacts, but they didn't fit my eyes properly. Intense pain and scratched corneas ensued, and a couple weeks without contacts...just when Mark and I were headed to the Virgin Islands for an anniversary trip (and to check another National Park off our list). This is about as close as I've come to a natural disaster (unless of course you count the big LA earthquake, or hurricanes Rita or Ike)...and I was NOT happy. I HATE my glasses. The way I look in glasses, the way I see in glasses, the inconvenience of glasses, everything. The new contacts arrived the day after we left for our trip. So we took the trip and I wore the glasses. (But took them off whenever we took photos). And I had a great time, despite the big chip on my shoulder.
Less than a week after returning, I headed on my first mission trip to Africa, an eye care mission trip. I decided with all the trouble I had just had, that I ought to wear the glasses to Africa too. I certainly didn't want to experience any more of these difficulties in a foreign land, and since I'd had the contacts less than a week, I wasn't sure if my eye problem would occur again. So, off I went to Africa, again with the glasses I hated.
And God used the whole glasses thing as a huge teaching opportunity for me, a lesson I would not have experienced if I had been wearing my contacts. Especially about being thankful for things that I just took for granted for 35 years, like my glasses. And I also had a good laugh about the man who got glasses correcting his 20/200 vision (the same as mine...it means you cannot read the big E), and asked me, "should I wear these when I drive?" Think about that the next time you go driving in Kenya.
Anyway, I was thinking about that experience again the last couple of days for a few reasons. First, several friends posted on facebook recently about an object lesson at church. I said I loved a good object lesson, until I was the object, and then I object. And I remembered this particular lesson, in which I was the object, and I was objecting, until God opened my eyes to the lesson he had for me. And then I was thankful.
Oddly enough, the object lesson my friends were posting about had to do with specks and logs in the eye...
The second reason I was thinking about it, is because I'm having eye issues again. A week of irritation that I attributed to a very high pollen count, a couple days without wearing my problems, er contacts, and I thought the problems were over. But today while I was driving Brianna to school the problem came back and then some. Finally decided to see the eye doc. Anyway, the doc was out, so I had a sub (whom I loved, and wished he was my doctor). He said there was no debris in my eye (no logs or specks), gave me some drops, and 2 options. (Actually, they're not options, as I don't get to choose between the chicken and the beef). In scenario A my eyes are irritated, and with the drops they'll be better when I go back to see my doctor tomorrow. In scenario B it's something else, and it won't go away on it's own...whatever that means, which I'm not dwelling on for now. Either way, I see the doc tomorrow. I'm hoping for scenario A, since I don't like the way "won't go away on it's own" sounds.
Meanwhile, I'm waiting to see how God is going to use this as an object lesson. Besides, I've got these $600 glasses that I got in September to only wear at night when I took my contacts out...it's about time they see the light of day.
