Do You Know What I See?

Do you know what I see? What a powerful question that set's the stage for a life-altering answer!

I'm thinking this morning about a men's retreat I recently lead called Band of Brothers Weekend.  It's a passion of mine to take men through such an experience because it was a retreat like ours that was a turning point in my life.  On the drive home from that weekend,  I was blessed and blown away as I read story after story of the healing and freedom Jesus brought to the hearts of the men.  My favorite testimony included this line: "For the first time I was able to call God, 'Father.'"  It's what Jesus lived, died and was resurrected for...to reconcile us to our Father so that we may live in and be transformed by His love.

One of the things that is unique about these retreats is we use lots of movie scenes, visual stories really, to illustrate the truths we present.  On the first night, something new stood out in a scene from "Braveheart."  Braveheart is the story of William Wallace, a mythic Christ-figure who gives his life to free Scotland from British oppression.  The scene we show is the first open-field battle at Stirling.  The Scottish Nobles are backed by a rag-tag army of commoners who are overwhelmed by the size of the British army and are ready to go home.  These men are uninspired by the nobles' appeal to their self-preservation:  "Do not flee!  Wait until we've negotiated!"  Then covered in war paint, Wallace rides in and addresses the army calling them "Sons of Scotland."  He reminds them of their identity, their true strength.  (Scotland was such a stubborn country the Roman Empire gave up on overtaking them and just built a wall around them.)  He then identifies himself and conveys to them what he sees when he looks at them: "I am William Wallace, and I see a whole army of my countryman here in defiance of tyranny. You've come to fight as free men and free men you are!  What will you do with that freedom?"

Have you ever considered the power of words spoken by a person of high regard?  As children, we just assume how our parents see us and the messages they convey are true about us.  And then there are teachers and coaches, pastors and bosses, not to mention peers, boyfriends and girlfriends.  I was just telling my wife Michelle the other day that I think our relationship is still affected by a message of rejection conveyed by a girl in high school that I had pined away for, for years...twenty-five years ago.  We elevate some people's voices above others.  And ultimately we all-too-often elevate the voice of a mere human over the voice of our Father and Creator.

Listen to what your true Father says about you and consider this question for each: "Does it ring true?"

You are created in my image. I planted you and redeemed you to be a display of my splendor ( Genesis 1:27/Isaiah 61:3).

Even while you are still steeped in sin, I love you enough to have made the ultimate sacrifice for you. (Romans 5:9)

I chose you even before you were born. (Ephesians 1:11)

You are my treasured possession! (Exodus 19:5)

If those phrases rang true, you are receiving them.  If they don't, what you are doing, in effect, is telling yourself that's not true about you. You are rejecting those statement and, probably unknowingly, are calling God a liar.  These statements are true, however, and they are just a sampling of what your Father and mine sees when he sees us.  What kind of love would overflow from you onto others if you saw yourself as God sees you and loved yourself as God loves you?

May this be a reminder that you have a voice in someone's life especially those who hold you in high regard.  It's your opportunity to see them with God's eyes and to convey what you see.  Words that are true and consistent with Father's voice will bring life.  Words of condemnation will bring death.  May we receive the words of life and love from our Father into our hearts and then pass them on.  May we look someone in the eye and ask, "Do you know what I see when I see you?", and then may we convey the very sentiments of God Himself.