I Can See Clearly Now...

Ever since I was in 5th grade I have worn glasses or contacts to correct my vision. It was the way life worked and thankfully I had a correction for my problem. Over the past few years my eyes decided they hated contacts and wanted nothing to do with them. This meant I had to revert back to glasses and no sunglasses. Over the last few months I pondered and soon decided LASIK eye surgery might be the best way to go. After looking at different options, I went in for a consultation and decided to schedule the surgery. Last Friday I had LASIK and Saturday morning I could see 20/20! (According to the Dr.!)

I spent 24 hours in the awesome glasses pictured above!! 

 I was amazed and still am at the fact I don't wake up and have to look for my glasses. I can read signs faraway and books up close. In 8 seconds, the vision in both my eyes was corrected.Honesty  moment...I say things were great right away and they were, but things haven't been perfect. My eyes get tired easily or dry which causes my vision to get a little clouded. Even with the hiccups, my vision has been corrected. 

Over the next few days I spent quite a bit of time thinking about this...and it led me to a blog post! 

I had a problem (bad eyesight). I thought I had the ultimate solution (glasses). I realized I wasn't truly fixing the problem, I was controlling the problem. Yes, my glasses worked well and I was very thankful for them, but they were not a true fix. LASIK was a true fix. It got down to the heart (okay, the cornea) of the problem and reshaped it. 

I decided to apply this idea first to my spiritual life. How many times do I have a problem that I "fix" with glasses when I really need to get to the "cornea" of the problem and rely on God? Many times it is easy to find a solution that is more like the glasses because fixes like LASIK or coming to God can be scary. (Believe me...I had the fear of going blind!!) Sometimes our problem is a void or an emptiness we have.  We tend to use "glasses or contacts," such as earthly relationships, drugs, alcohol, ice cream, sex, food, or work to fill the voids. Although those things appear to correct the problem, the void still exists "when we take our glasses off". It isn't until we come to God that the void is truly fulfilled. Once we come to God, we might still have times when the blurriness comes back or the problem resurfaces when we get tired, but deep down, the problem has been corrected. Do you have a constant problem that you think you've found a solution for? Have you found a solution or a true fix? Ask God what he thinks! Know He is a true fix!!

I just love making applications for my two favorite things...my faith and my job!! 

So here goes the school application...

As teachers, many of our students come in with problems. Those problems could be emotional, social, or academics. It is our job as teachers to identify and correct those problems. Many times in the hustle and bustle of school we want a  quick fix like "putting glasses on," when we really need the "precision of a laser" to truly fix it. For our students, going home at night can be the same as me taking off my glasses at night! The problem still exists. As we prepare for this fall, let's make sure we remember our students matter the most and it is our job to help them actually fix their problem rather than masking it. It might take a few extra minutes reading with a child, or a lunch date together to talk about life. Maybe it will take a few minutes talking on the playground or five extra minutes during small group to review those facts. Whatever it takes...be what your kids need to truly correct their vision!!!! 👀