I recently had cataract surgery on both of my eyes. For a two-week period I had one “good” (right) eye and one “bad” (left) eye since most eye surgeons do not perform the surgery on both eyes at the same time. It was challenging during that two-week time frame because I could no longer wear my bifocal glasses.  They had been rendered useless the first day. My left eye is the dominate eye so it still needed them, but my right didn’t since I had upgraded to a multifocal lens that would eliminate the need for glasses for the most part.  I read a lot for both work and pleasure so I still needed my reading glasses to read my Bible and other really fine print for my left eye to be effective and because my right eye was still healing and adjusting. I didn’t need glasses at all for distance or for using the computer.

I often found myself covering up one eye and comparing it to the other eye. The difference was quite remarkable. I would tell people it is like the difference between regular TV and HD. However, the most notable difference happened last week while I was getting a pedicure. I must have been bored because I found myself covering my eyes one at a time to see how they compared after almost two weeks.

Thank goodness, I was there early on a Saturday morning and there weren’t a lot of people looking at the crazy lady covering her eyes one at a time while uttering “whoa” out loud in complete amazement.

When I covered my left eye, I could see bright white walls, sparkling color and HD like definition to the things around me. When I covered my right eye, it was looking through a golden-brown filter that left everything looking dull, dirty and fuzzy. Letters were often in double vision.  I was stunned by the difference. I hadn’t noticed the stark difference until I looked at the light-colored walls under the light of a brightly lit nail salon.

Then on Sunday, during my evening “prayer walk”, I thought about the upcoming second part of cataract surgery to replace the lens on the left eye. I thanked God for the success of the surgery on the right eye and I prayed that the second surgery would be just as successful. After a slight chuckle over my antics at the nail salon the day before, I remembered my optometrist trying to convince me over the last few years that I needed the surgery. I kept putting it off telling him I was “too young” and that I could see just fine as long as I had new glasses. He said that new glasses wouldn’t do any good since it was the presence of the cataracts that was impairing my vision. He said, “You will be surprised after you have the surgery. You have just gotten used to not being able to see clearly.”

As I pondered this, my prayer changed from my physical eyes to the eyes of my heart. Have I been walking with a cloudy, golden-brown filter that distorted what my heart could see? Have I become accustomed to not being able see the things of God clearly?  Am I confused by  double vision? 

So, I prayed Psalm 119:18.

“Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.”

Oh, Lord, give me a new lens for my heart. I want to see things fresh, new, bright and clear. Open my eyes to see the hidden treasures in your Word. Remove the cataracts of my heart and help me see the world through your eyes under the bright light of Jesus.