Screens

We had a moment in our house this morning. You know, one of those moments where the rage suddenly hits you. After a bit of a wait, the packages arrived yesterday. First you notice how big they are and then, when you try to move them, how heavy they are. And there were only two when there should have been three. Today was opening and checking the parcels day. I say parcel. Not really sure that’s the best or most accurate term. These “parcels” contain clear screens for the charity shop. You now, the screens that you to have to have between customer and shopper so that no one gets too close. So, I’m upstairs when I hear the “Oh no!” ring our through the house. No, really that’s what I heard! I raced downstairs to see, not clear screens, but opaque ones. Opaque ones? That’s no good. You can’t have opaque screens between the customer and the shop assistant. How would that work? You can’t see each other through an opaque screen! It beggers belief. Why would they send opaque screens? How could they have missed the point of this purchase? It’s COVID-19 and we need clear screens - everyone does. Why would we pay a ridiculous £600 for opaque screens which are useless? Now we have to get on the phone and join the queue of all the other poor people who have been delivered opaque screens when they ordered clear ones. And we’re sixth in the queue. Sixth! And then it happened. What if…no there isn’t…is there? Oh…wait… yes there is. A protective opaque layer that peels off the clear screen to reveal…a clear screen! Phone down! Turned out it was good to be sixth on the queue. Got me thinking though. I don’t always see clearly. There are many times when my vision is clouded by expectation. there are many times when might sight is blinded by my own prejudice and opinion. Sometimes it’s so bad that I can’t see beyond the end of my own nose. Rarely, if ever, am I able to see the whole picture. And yet I have a fantastic ability to believe otherwise. Sometimes I even pretend I can see more clearly than God. Sadly, I think I should probably have said that I mostly think I can see better than God. Paul writes that now we see through a glass darkly (which is another way of saying we don’t see clearly). I would do well to accept the truth of that and stop pretending I can see more than I can. I would do well to accept that God can see far, far better than me. Paul does say that one day we will see clearly, when we see God face to face. But until then, God is the one who sees everything clearly. Until then, I’ll try to be more honest about my ability to see clearly.