There isn’t a verse I can think of that floors me more than this one:
Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.”
John 9:3
When this guy was born, his parents probably were a wreck for months or more trying to figure out why he wouldn’t respond to certain things. Maybe he never looked at them and smiled, so they wondered why their child seemed ambivalent towards them. When they finally realized he was blind, they had to make decisions to change their lives in order to help him get along with his. Their entire lives were turned upside down for their son who was born without the gift of sight (those who have lost it realize what a gift it is).
As a child, this man never saw his parents. If his friends wanted to play tag, he couldn’t because it was too dangerous. When his best friend showed him the new toy his dad made, this guy couldn’t see it and marvel as well. I’m sure he didn’t live his life in anger and frustration, but I’m sure he had moments when he really wished he could see. After all, it would have made his life, as well as the lives of his friends and family, so much easier. I bet he wondered why God had made him this way.
Then as a man, he meets Jesus and finds out why he’s been frustrated his entire life. It was so at that precise moment, with barely a hint of effort (I mean, he *did* bend to the ground), Jesus could take the blindness away.
I have a hard enough time wondering why it takes God a few months or just a couple years to answer prayers, and this guy had to wait his whole life. I can’t even fathom that. 20 years for a 2 second miracle? It frustrates me to even think about it!
Lord, forgive my impatience, but *please* don’t make me learn the hard way…
-j
I'm Jason, and I like to write.
I appreciate your sentiment, but I can say from experience that the greatest amount of growth comes in learning things the hard way. I know that in my experiences leading back to the beginning of this year have helped me to trust God so much more than I would ever have been able. I thank God for the hard times, because now, I can trust Him more easily as I face the next trial