In the late 1940’s there were several shoe stores in downtown Harrisburg, Pa. It was a long time before indoor shopping malls. I loved getting on the bus and going downtown. At Christmas time we would stand in the snowy slush on the sidewalks and peer into Bowmans and Pomeroys. They filled their sidewalk display windows with mechanical reindeer and elves. It was dazzling to my young eyes. I left lots of finger and nose prints on those windows. But it was the shoe stores that provided the best entertainment. Each store had a fluoroscope. I would run down the street from store to store sticking my feet in the machines and watching the bones wiggle about in my feet. It’s a wonder I still have feet.
We now have devices to detect which parts of our brains we use when we perform certain mental tasks. And while we have machines that reveal the veracity of our comments we do not yet have devices to see into our souls. Some say our eyes are the windows of our souls but that is more poetry than truth. Some of the most dishonest people can look so honest. Remember the last used car you bought?
I’m not sure, if I could, I would want to see into my soul. It can be a frightening place filled with a lifetime of nourished flaws. Recently I found myself in church singing, “Silently now I wait for Thee, ready my God, thy will to see, open my eyes, illumine me, Spirit divine.” I stopped. One must be careful for what one prays. It might be answered and we might not be ready for the revelation. Perhaps I should pray, “Open my eyes just a little bit.” Perhaps I can handle “a little bit.”
Written by Roger Bothwell on December 30, 2009
Spring of Life Ministry, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574
rogerbothwell.org