Needing Another set of Eyes:

I have mentioned before that my mom is a better cleaner than me. She is really good at seeing every single speck of dirt that is in a house and can clean it up really well.  I try to clean as well as her, but I just can’t seem to get there, especially in my house.  This is why I ask her to help me clean my apartment once a year.  I need another set of eyes when it comes to cleaning my house.  When I want to write a really good paper,  I often will ask my friend Kenzie to look over these written works.  She is an English teacher, and she is incredibly better at writing and putting together words than I am.  I need her second set of eyes to help me in my papers and writings.  

This is because I have realized that in many things, we need another set of eyes. We can get so caught up in our own world, that we can’t see all of the sins or the problems that are right in front of us.  We may not understand how our emotions are impacting our actions because we are too blinded by the things that are happening in our lives.  For example, when I had my first knee surgery, I was pretty miserable.  I hated being laid up for so long.  However, I had no idea that I was acting significantly different from how I acted in the past.  It wasn’t till a few people at my church asked my mom if I was doing alright that I realized I was not smiling or as joyful as I had been previously.  I needed to spend more time with the Lord to help get back to the joy I possessed before.  This is why we need another set of eyes on anything we do, even and most importantly, our walk with God.   

There is a surplus amount of Bible verses that focus on the importance of fellowship.  A verse that I have been working on memorizing shows a lot of the humility we need to have in order to continue to grow in fellowship with other believers.  1 Peter 5:5-6 says, “In the same way, you who are younger, submit yourself to your elders.  All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, ‘God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.’ Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.”  I know that the word used here is elder, but I also believe that in this context, this can mean anyone who is older in Christ and can help us all grow closer to him.  This doesn’t necessarily have to be an elder in the church or someone who is significantly older in age.    

There are so many reasons for this importance in fellowship.  First, we as people can easily get distracted by life.  I can get so focused on my day-to-day job, exercise, books I am reading, and family that I may forget to do my Bible study or really dive deep into what the Lord is saying. I can even get distracted by my schedule while I am sitting at church.  When we have fellowship with other believers and have someone to sit down with us, we are forced to focus on God and his work in our lives.  Maybe, we may not even want to work on our Bible Study, but then after spending some time, we realize the importance of this time and how good it is for our souls.  

Second, we do actually have a job to help grow our fellow brothers and sisters.  It is very important to sharpen our brothers and sisters in Christ.  We can help be the eyes for others. Our experiences may show our brothers and sisters certain ways to live with peace, joy, patience, and love.  As the verse mentions, we are in charge of lifting each other up, so it is essential that we spend time encouraging one another in life and faith.   

Third, we need to feel refreshed.  Just as it is our job to help grow our brothers and sisters, it is also very important to become refreshed from our other fellow brothers and sisters as well.  Spending time in the Lord is refreshing.  It can be incredibly refreshing to spend time with the Lord on our own, but it is important to spend time with others, so they can help us grow in the ways that we need to grow.  I know that when I have had opportunities to tell others about what is going on in my life and how the Lord is working in my life, I do wind up feeling a lot better and a lot more refreshed.  

Fourth, when we have trials and tribulations, it is important to have others that we can lean on.  During rough times, it can be very easy to not see the world or the Lord as clearly as we did previously.  It can be easy to focus on the bad and the ugly as opposed to the wonderful and beautiful.  However, meeting with someone else may give you an insight into the good works that God may be doing in the situation that you are currently in.  

Fifth, we can learn so much more from the Bible.  Again, having another set of eyes, there is also another brain.  You know what they say, two minds are better than one.  We can both read the same passage and get different thoughts, ideas, and takeaways for how to live one’s life. My challenge for you this week is to do a Bible Study with someone else this week.  Have a Bible discussion and dive deep into the scriptures.  You may be amazed to find what the other person was thinking.  They may open your eyes to completely different perspectives or thoughts.