Last Tuesday was a Goldilocks day at Orange Beach. Not too hot, not too cold. It was just right! As the sun began to sink, Ron and I gathered our belongings because dinner was on our radar.
After getting all gussied up, we made our way to the car when, suddenly, what looked like a hyperactive lava lamp exploded inside my left eye. (If your teen years were in the 70s, you know lava lamps.) Black swaths swished and swirled this way and that inside my eye. It was an unsettling psychedelic moment, for sure!
Thankfully, we were directed to a doctor who quickly diagnosed a tear in my retina and a slight detachment. He performed laser surgery immediately, and I learned that the black swirl I saw was blood escaping from the tear. Even though the tear was repaired and my eye appears perfectly fine on the outside, I will still see stringy remnants of blood in my field of vision for another month or two. I’m just happy it wasn’t both eyes!
There’s a guy in the New Testament who endured a far more difficult trial. He was the poster child for faith in Jesus, yet found himself in Herod’s prison cell for over a year. John the Baptist made the wrong people angry by doing all the right things. He prepared the way for Jesus by proclaiming Him to be the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. He announced Jesus as the Messiah who had finally come. However, after months in prison, John sent a question to Jesus through his followers: “Are you the Messiah we’ve been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?” (Matthew 11:3 NLT)
There are two schools of thought about why John would ask such a question. Perhaps John’s long imprisonment allowed doubts to creep in. If Jesus really was the Messiah, why didn’t he come to John’s rescue? On the other hand, perhaps John posed that thoughtful question to teach his disciples more about Jesus. Asking Jesus that question would surely prompt Him to confirm His identity and bolster the fledgling faith of John’s disciples.
I’m glad I don’t know which theory is correct, because I occasionally have a few doubts, don’t you? I’ve wondered why bad things happen to good people. I’ve even wondered why good things happen to bad people. I often grow impatient while waiting for answers. I’m puzzled when God doesn’t come to my rescue right away. Like John, I’ve questioned whether I should look to someone else for answers. But then … I remember that God is God and I am not. I remember that faith is the evidence of things not seen, and all I have to do is look around me to see the invisible hand of God. After all, He personally encoded my eyes with healing properties. How incredible is that!
I also know that well-timed questions can prompt introspection and thoughtful responses. John knew his time on earth was short, so he sought to strengthen his disciples’ faith and resolve by sending them with a question to the only one to whom they should pledge their allegiance. When we have questions, we can run to Jesus for answers. His Spirit helps us remember that HE is the substance of things we hope for, the evidence of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1) When John’s disciples brought Jesus their question, He responded, “Go back to John and tell him what you have heard and seen—the blind see, the lame walk, those with leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor.” (Matthew 11:4-5 NLT) Running back to Jesus helps us recall what He’s already done, giving us confidence in what lies ahead.
To those looking us in the eye, our faith may appear perfectly fine on the outside. Yet, we may have doubts swirling behind our eyes of faith. That’s when Jesus embraces us and all of our doubts, confirming that He is the Coming One – the One who forgives all our sins, heals all our diseases, redeems us from death, crowns us with love and tender mercies, fills our lives with good things, and renews our youth like the eagle’s. (Psalm 103:3-5)
Our life wrapped in His is never too much or too little. Our Goldilocks lives are just right! And that’s a story worth telling!
