Scripture I'm Reflecton On: John 9:6-7
"Then he spit on the ground, made mud with the saliva, and spread the mud over the blind man's eyes. He told him, 'Go wash yourself in the pool of Siloam.' So the man went and washed and came back seeing"
Reflection:
Anyone that knows me can attest to the fact I have a tendency to notice and key in on small things, like noticing something random in the corner of a picture or remebering something completely random and inconsequential months later. This verse is another time I find myself doing that..
I find myself wondering, what is the point of the whole mud thing? Clearly its in the Bible for a reason. Clearly Jesus did it this way for a reason. John just didn't make this up to enhance the story, this isn't a Hollywood movie script. Jesus had the power to bring the man's vision back with the snap of a finger. Surely the act of putting the mud on his eyes wasn't the "cure." So what was the point?
I did a quick google search just to see what others had said. A lot of different reasons are mentioned, for instance...using the Earth could certainly be intentionally symbolic to remind us of our creator's power. I think there is more here than just "symbolism" though. The message I take away from this act by Jesus is of a different message. I think this is a reminder for us to have faith and obey God, even on little things or things that do not make sense to us. The blind man in this case didn't ask any questions, he didn't question Jesus' method. He simply showed faith and followed Jesus commands, and he regained his sight. Compare this with other stories in the Bible. Saul disobeyed God's word when he kept a King alive along with some livestock. Result = He ended up losing the throne. Namaan became angry when Elisha commanded that he had to wash himself in the Jordan River to cure his leprocy, and initially refused to do so. Result = No cure.
One of the coolest things I found, and continue to find out as my faith grows, is how many times God gives us an order, or 'advice' on a regular, daily basis. We can usually hear Him when we are considering something big, and usually obey what He puts on our heart in these situations. But what about during the small day to day things? Ever been watching a YouTube video and just knew that it was something you shouldn't be watching? Ever started to do something and got a strong feeling that you needed to stop and do something else? These "I Knows".....I know I should do this, I know I shouldn't do this, I know going out with this person is a bad idea, I know going for a walk down that street isn't going to be good, I know I need to call my mom tonight....I firmly believe is God putting a command on our heart, and asking us to do something in faith.
It's easy to "reason" our way out of God's commands when it comes to small things he puts on our heart. "I can carry this coffee and orange juice to my car along with all my books, I'll be careful"...next thing you know your shirt is ruined. "I'm sure going out with these guys to the bar will be fine"...next thing you know youre stuck in a situation where you can't think of anything but trying to go home. These things happen everyday in our lives. Sometimes you just feel uneasy about someone. Sometimes you just feel like you need to leave a situation. Sometimes you feel like you should go talk to that person in the corner. Sometimes you just know it's time to call your family or a close friend. I guarantee if you reflect on all the times you went against "that 'I Know' feeling" you had in your heart, it always turned out to be a wrong decision. That's certainly the case in my life, and I imagine its the case for everyone.
Final Thought:
It may seem silly to write a devotion on such "small things." But is it really? Think about these small things. These are what cause most people the most problems in their life. How many times have you stressed over something that was "small" in the grand scheme of things, because you were fighting the feeling you had on your heart? How many times have you made yourself worry about something even though God clearly has put the answer on your heart?
We have to fight against confusing these "small things" with "insignificant things." The "small things" are the ones that will build up on us. When we make a habit out of fighting what God puts on our heart in terms of small day-to-day decisions, then eventually we will turn this in to fighting God's commands on bigger decisions.
Have faith in what God puts on your heart. It's not always going to make sense, especially if your someone like me who needs to hear a logical reason behind everything. But I'm slowly learning through experience that just having question-less faith is the way to go. Putting mud on a blind man's eyes makes no sense at all. But the result...is certainly one that is glorious.
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