Since I am leaving for Ohio shortly, I thought I would take a few moments to update you on Janna’s surgery. Thanks to all of you who prayed for her. She (and Tami) were born with my eyes. That is bad. I began wearing glasses in 4th grade and if it hadn’t been for new material coming out I would have been walking with a permanent downward look to my head. Yes, my glasses were that thick. Coke bottle thick. I wore contacts for a number of years but my vision stopped being sharp with them so I went back to glasses permanently. Then I (finally) developed cataracts which allowed me to have eye surgery and no longer need glasses! (And all the angels in heaven rejoiced with me! 🙂 ). I wear readers for up close and when I preach I wear a pair of glasses with a lens which allows me to read and look up and see people sharply instead of being a blur. I think they would prefer I not see them sitting with their eyes closed or pretending to listen.  Just kidding. I have no one in the congregation who does that!

Anyway…a little over a year or so ago Tami’s eyes got so bad she had eye surgery. They were worse than mine. Her eyeballs were shaped like footballs so the normal lens implant would not work. Now she only has to wear a thin pair of glasses to see in the distance or to drive. Janna’s eyes were bad but not as bad as mine and Tami’s. She had a lens implanted in each eye-one for distance and one for close up. She has astigmatism (courtesy of yours truly) in both eyes so the doctor said he put them in just perfectly. When she looked up (she was awake the whole time) and could read the clock, she shouted loud enough I’m thinking we could have heard her if there weren’t a number of doors between us. She immediately tested 20/40 and that will get better as her eyes and vision settle in. She goes back this morning for a one day follow-up and then Jo and I will be taking her back to Ohio. This doctor is so good he was willing to work with an eye doctor in Columbus, OH to do the other follow up visits.

Thanks again for praying for her. But the preacher in me can’t and won’t let this go. The importance of sight cannot be diminished. One of my mother’s concerns was that she would go blind. Taking away a person’s sight, while it can be overcome, is a big blow, especially if that person loves to read for example. But consider this: there are thousands of people who lack sight. Not physical sight, but spiritual sight. While they may have 20/20 visually, they are blind spiritually. The idea of sight in the Bible is a constant. Moses wanted to see God. David said, “Your Word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path.”  (Psalm 119:105)  Jesus said that “He was the light of the world” and in Matthew 5:14-16 He said, “You are the light of the world-like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.” Light dispels darkness. Followers of Christ have the light of Jesus in them; those without Him only have darkness. Be light to someone. Show them THE LIGHT…Jesus…can take away their darkness and bring light to their life.

Again, thanks for your prayers. Thanks to Dr. Fornefeld and his amazing team at Clariti in Bloomington, IN. I highly recommend them (so much so Janna came here). Above all, I thank God for His marvelous gift of sight and for giving men and women the ability help people see better. And I pray you will know the Light of the World.

{Note: All Scripture is from the New Living Translation}