Do You See What I See?

Dear Faith Family,

Then Elisha prayed and said, “O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see.”  So the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha, (2 Kings 6:17). 

It’s known as an ambiguous image or an optical illusion.  You know, a picture of a rabbit…or is it a picture of a duck?  A picture of a symmetrical vase…or is it two people looking at each other face to face?  Silver forks or pink carrots?  And there’s the infamous “My Wife And My Mother In Law,” (W. E. Hill, 1915). 

A friend of mine engaged us with some ambiguous images in Bible Study this past Sunday.  Got me to thinkin’ (that’s thinking hard but not as hard as thinking with a g).  And then this: “What makes these images so fascinating isn’t just their clever design, but what they reveal about human perception itself. Each time your brain “flips” between seeing one interpretation and then another, you’re witnessing (what) your visual system actively constructs, rather than passively records, reality. These perceptual toggles show how our minds continually organize, interpret, and even struggle with visual information, demonstrating that what we “see” is as much a product of our brain’s interpretive work as it is of the light entering our eyes, (Max Wertheimer). 

In the words of Shawn Spencer, “I’ve heard it both ways!”  What’s the point?  Life is constructed of gazillions (according to Mirriam-Webster that’s a huge, unspecified number.  Add an s and it becomes huger!) of pictures that I would call ambiguous images or optical illusions.  Those pictures can be seen in more than one way. 

Consider 2 Kings 6.  Is that a picture of defeat seeing the Syrian army?  Or a picture of victory seeing the mountain full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha?  And what about the disciples on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24)?  Was Jesus a fail, a wanna-be Savior?  Or was He the prophetically promised Messiah?  And at the pinnacle of potential ambiguous images stands Calvary’s cross!  The end of hope?  Or hope exalted? 

Fast forward.  How many ambiguous images have we misinterpreted today?  Are the people around us distractions or opportunities?  Does stuff just happen or are the circumstances we find ourselves in opportunities to discover something new about our God?  Is God still working or has He left the building?  Are we seeing clearly the gazillions of pictures composing our lives? 

Two to dos: 1. Ask God to open your eyes (think 2 Kings 6:17 and Luke 24:31).  2. Keep on being transformed by the renewing of your mind by the Word of God.  By God’s grace teach your mind how to interpret what you see! 

Learning how to see clearly,

Pastor Karl