Lightened Eyes

“The light of the eyes rejoiceth the heart: and a good report maketh the bones fat.” (Pr 15:30 AV)

 

There is no small dispute over the first part of this proverb.  Some take it to mean the light which enters the eyes, i.e., the sun or fire.  Other, the light which exudes from the countenance of a face which has hope despite the receiver have little or none.  I tend to favor the second merely because of the second half of the verse.  The idea of the verse is that good news or a good report affects the hearer.  What we want to do, is focus on that first half.  The book of Proverbs also states,  “In the light of the king’s countenance is life; and his favour is as a cloud of the latter rain.” (Pr 16:15 KJV)  In a couple of other places, the Bible says,  “There be many that say, Who will shew us any good? LORD, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.” “For thou hast made him most blessed for ever: thou hast made him exceeding glad with thy countenance.” (Ps 4:6, 21:6 KJV)  In other words, I get the distinct impression if someone bears the light of hope and joy in his heart, it will come out in his eyes, and the one who needs it will be encouraged.

The LORD has been good to me and gave me plenty of opportunity to minister to the hurting.  Hospital visits were one of my favorite things to do.  It was of the utmost importance that no matter how dire a situation might be, the chaplain never wore it on his face.  Not that the chaplain should give false hope where no hope can be given.  Rather, the joy and hope that are founded upon his faith are what the patient should see.  I have had a few of those visits.  One of my last ones we with a good friend of mine, Lawrence Barret.  His wife passed away from brain cancer and he began to decline.  We had gone turkey hunting together and had gotten close.  So, after his wife died and he was checked into a nursing home, I went to see him every week.  I knew what was coming.  He knew what was coming.  That didn’t mean we needed to dwell on it.  As we sat, hour after hour, we reminisced of the many adventures we had in the turkey fields.  How he had deliberately set me at the edge of a field with a bull not thirty yards from me.  As we spoke of the good old days, he was able to see the light of life in my eyes and it eased his burden even if the inevitable was around the corner.  What our eyes say can affect others more than we realize.

People will have a tough time in life.  It is faith in the LORD and strength by His spirit that eases those burdens.  If we are downcast and with little hope, trying to help someone worse of then we will not work.  They can see it in your eyes.  However, like Lawrence, I knew where he was going and that I would see him again someday.  I knew his suffering would be short-lived and considered it a privilege to help him graduate into eternity.  What Lawrence didn’t need is someone to come in with eyes full of pity and sorrow.  He needed hope and joy.  We had a good time, Lawrence and I.  One of the greatest blessings of ministry the LORD gave to me.  There is always hope.  There is always a reason to have light behind the eyes.  When others need it, you will have the strength they need to press on through.