Impaired Vision 10/8/13

There is an old Dutch proverb that says, "What the eyes cannot see, the heart cannot crave." And the Italians seem to agree with one of their own: "If the eyes do not admire, the heart will not desire."

But long before these words of wisdom, David had his own proverb that addressed the same issue: "I will set before my eyes no vile thing."

Our eyes are the gateway to our hearts, souls and minds. It is what we see, day after day, that shapes our thoughts, values and ultimately our behavior. What we see, we desire and what we desire is what drives us in one direction or another. Our vision triggers our thoughts and our thoughts our behavior.

Take for example the city of Jordan in the Bible. When God had this city destroyed by the Israelites, no one was to take any of the spoils. But Achan disobeyed the order; he stole a beautiful garment, a bag of silver and a bar of gold and buried it under his tent. This selfish act of desiring what he saw brought a visitor called Death to the Israelites and because of his greed, thirty-six men were left dead on the battlefield. Joshua was alarmed by these deaths because God had promised no casualties would come upon the Israelites during their mission to destroy this evil city. So Joshua decided to search the tents of his soldiers. And lo & behold, he found the accursed things in Achan's tent.

In making his confession before being stoned to death and being buried in a criminal's grave, Achan said, "I saw... I coveted... I took... and I hid."

And that is the path to sin: First we look. Then we desire. Then we decide. Then we sin. Then we try to find an excuse. Then we lie. Then we try to hide our wrongdoing. But it's too late. The consequences will come. And for me, my consequence was prison. It all begins with a simple glance.

Rechell Williams #V69138 A3-16-6L
P.O. Box 5248
Corcoran, CA 93212