“Let me see now”
Hymn
“Teach me God to wonder” VU 299
Teach me, God, to wonder,
teach me, God, to see.
Let your world of beauty capture me.
Praise to you be given.
Love for you be lived.
Life be celebrated, joy you give!Let me, God, be open,
let me loving be.
Let your world of people speak to me.
Praise to you be given.
Love for you be lived.
Life be celebrated, joy you give!Let me, God, be ready,
let me be awake.
In your world of loving, my place take.
Praise to you be given.
Love for you be lived.
Life be celebrated, joy you give!Teach me, God, to know you,
hear you when you speak,
see you in my neighbor when we meet.
Praise to you be given
Love for you be lived.
Life be celebrated, joy you give!
Scripture Psalm 8 (The Message)
God, brilliant Lord, yours is a household name.
Nursing infants gurgle choruses about you; toddlers shout the songs that drown out enemy talk, and silence atheist babble.
I look up at your macro-skies, dark and enormous, your handmade sky-jewelry, moon and stars mounted in their settings. Then I look at my micro-self and wonder, why do you bother with us? Why take a second look our way?
Yet we’ve so narrowly missed being gods, bright with Eden’s dawn light. You put us in charge of your handcrafted world, repeated to us your Genesis-charge, made us lords of sheep and cattle, even animals out in the wild, birds flying and fish swimming, whales singing in the ocean deeps.
God, brilliant Lord, your name echoes around the world.
Prayer
Let us pray – O God, we long to see a world at peace, where people live in harmony. We need to see balance in our lives and in nature. We struggle to find grace in our world of confusion. Help us to see your presence around us in the world and in the people we meet. Amen
Lesson
What does it mean “to see”? When a blind friend says “I see now what you mean”, what is he really saying? What about “I’ll see you later”, or “See if you can fix that problem”.
What in the world do you see? It depends on who you are, what you are thinking at that particular time, but mostly on your point of view.
In Betty Radford Turcott’s book, “There is a Season”, she notes examples of how scientists, historians, accountants, and theologians see the world.
Scientists look at the world from a scientific point of view. They see a world that can be explained by theories and formulae. Creation was a “big bang”. Light is broken into different colours with different wavelengths. Substances can be broken down into different symbols and numbers. Sound patters can be written on paper. We read their reports and hear the complicated explanations. The scientist sees the world and we marvel.
The viewpoint of an historian is different, enriched by her knowledge and background. She looks out at the port on the ocean and sees what it was like when different civilizations were in control of the geographic area. She sees the world in terms of great events. Events are reported in terms of lasting effects on humanity. Wars are analyzed for the root causes, the humans and war machines involved and the final outcome. The historian sees the world and sometimes we tremble.
When an accountant sees the world, it is through columns of figures, ledgers and balance sheets. He sees “paper” being bought and sold. Profit or loss is the bottom line. Growth is the prime mover. The accountant looks at the world and we question our values.
Theologians see the world with another vision. The world is an expression of God’s creative power and compassionate care. Noah saw a rainbow and knew that God had been present in the flood. A poet writing a psalm saw God in the moon and the stars. The people of Galilee met Jesus and saw in him God’s mercy and love for humankind. Mary Magdalene met Jesus in the garden and saw God’s redeeming action in the risen rabbi.
Today we see through all these eyes. For many it is a composite of all the world views we read about and hear about. As an Easter people, we are striving for a world where there is justice and peace. Acceptance, compassion, hope and love are the bottom line. We see much that causes us pain and concern – we see the world as it is and ask “why?” But also we see hope and promise in the world – we see the world as it could be – as God meant it to be…and ask “why not?”
Discussion
Closing PrayerHow does an AOTS man see the world?
What should we do to see the world as God meant it to be?
Let us pray – Loving God, the pain of the world confronts us at every turn. At times we feel the need to shield our eyes from so much suffering. We need to see the world through your eyes of compassion and understanding. Help us to see your face in the face of everyone we meet. Help us to see the world as you saw it in the beginning- whole fruitful, harmonious and good. And help us to use that vision to recreate the world as a better place for all people. Amen.
