“I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints.” (Ephesians 1:18 NIV)

“My goodness, these glasses are dirty! I can barely read.” I’d just grabbed a pair from the table to help me read the paper. I pulled them off and realized that it wasn’t dirt that made them blurry — I’d picked up the single vision glasses that I use when working on my computer.

I have three different pairs of glasses: one for reading, one for the computer, and one with trifocals for every other situation. All three help me to see more clearly in a variety of situations. But just as I depend on these three for physical sight, I also need to depend on the various lenses of God’s Word for spiritual sight. As Michael W. Smith’s song based on today’s verse says, “Open the eyes of my heart, Lord … I want to see You.”

“Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.” (Psalm 119:18 NIV)

Have you ever had the experience of reading a verse in the Bible for the fifth or the tenth or even the hundredth time over the years, and all of a sudden, a wonderful new thought from that Scripture pops into your head? You have found something new that was there all the time, waiting for you. About thirty years ago, when I was well into adulthood, I “found” Jeremiah 29:11, the verse about God having a plan for us, though surely, I had read or heard it multiple times. It soon became my life verse.

We must be open to God’s leading as we read the Bible, waiting for Him to open our eyes to all that He has for us. We must avoid using the Bible for “bibliomancy”, an unbiblical form of divination, where we come to the Bible with a problem, randomly open it, point to a verse, and hope that it gives us the answer. Instead, we need to pray for wisdom as we read: wisdom to interpret Scripture carefully and wisdom to make the appropriate application to our lives.

The Bible is full of wisdom and wonder, and through it, we can find many ways to worship God. In it, we can find answers to life’s problems and encouragement for our daily needs. We must make it a part of our daily lives and pray for insight as we read. What can we do today to make this happen?

Prayer: Lord, “Open my eyes that I may see glimpses of truth Thou hast for me; place in my hands the wonderful key that shall unclasp and set me free. Silently now I wait for Thee, ready, my God, Thy will to see. Open my eyes, illumine me, Spirit divine!” (Clara H. Scott) Amen.

Copyright © 2023, by Sharon Cook <craftercook@gmail.com>, first published on the PresbyCan Daily Devotional presbycan.ca  
Apache Junction, USA

Used with the permission of PresbyCan and author.