The Best Way…
One thing I’m missing: smiles. I can’t see them – masks only reveal eyes. So I’m trying to see those, but I’ve noticed this: people are looking down a lot these days.
I’ve wondered about the missing smiles and the downcast eyes. Wondering how this is affecting not only us who are all grown-up, but what do the children see, feel? Children are the best readers of character, now their ability to ‘see’ someone has been covered up. That’s a bit scary. I’m not advocating mask/no mask – what I am advocating is humanity. We need to see each other. It’s how we know how each other feels. How can I stop and pray for someone whose hurting if I can’t tell if there’s a smile or a grimace hidden there?
Definition of humanity: compassionate, sympathetic, or generous behavior or disposition. This new normal has definitely put a damper on those qualities. Yet, God, who never changes is all those things and He still sees us and knows how burdened this pandemic makes us feel. “The LORD is good to all; He has compassion on all He has made.” (Psalm 145:9 NIV)
My grandson asked recently why the nature center he likes to visit is always closed. It’s hard to explain in three year old language. It’s hard to explain in any vernacular. The simplest way may be the hardest – man’s sinful hearts over the centuries have brought about disease and illness, and we are experiencing the outcome.
This is what I know: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8 NIV) For that reason, hope is ours. The hope? This is not all there is, there is a someday with no more sickness. Christ’s unchanging nature guarantees that in His presence we will never need a mask again.
In the meantime, I’m gonna try and see those eyes peering back at me. Try to look for the light of Jesus in them. And if I can’t perceive it, I’m gonna pray they will receive it.
It’s always been the best way – that’s why praying without ceasing isn’t a command, it’s a lifestyle. Here’s a favorite passage of Scripture, three precise ways to be in God’s will and live unmasked in our actions: “Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.” (1Thessalonians 5:16-18 NLT)
parisrenae 
Good observation of how people wearing masks often look down or away. The Lord says a lot about eyes in scripture – His and ours. See Matt 6:22, 23 and Luke 11:24, 35. “The lamp of the body is the eye…” Maybe it would be a more intentional practice to read a person’s feelings and their intentions through their eyes especially if we share the hope we have in the Lord with them. Blessings, Janet
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So glad that we don’t have to see, because He really sees. We just get to pray!
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You’re right that if feels we are losing a little bit of our humanity when we can’t see each other’s mouths. I’ve read that different cultures look to different parts of the face for expressions (Americans, for instance, look at the mouth, whereas some Asian cultures look more at the eyes). We will have to learn to be better eye-readers! 🙂
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That is interesting, yes, for now we will look to eyes and thank God that He sees the heart!
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