When God Opens Our Eyes: Seeing Beyond Our Circumstances

Have you ever felt like you're walking through life with blinders on, missing something important that God wants to show you? Sometimes we need divine intervention to truly see - not just with our physical eyes, but with the eyes of our hearts.

Why Do We Need Our Spiritual Eyes Opened?

Helen Keller, the famous deaf and blind woman of the early 20th century, once said something profound when someone told her it must be terrible being blind. She replied, "There's one thing worse than being blind - it's to have sight and no vision."

Many of us are restricted in all that we can be and all that God has promised us because we need God to open the eyes of our hearts. We need Him to help us understand and see Him so He can transform our lives, encourage our hearts, inspire our faith, and release His authority and confidence to walk in His will.

What Does It Mean to Have Spiritual Blindness?

When Jesus spoke to His disciples about the Holy Spirit, He explained that the first thing the Spirit would do is open people's eyes. He said the Spirit would "convict the world of sin, of righteousness and of judgment."

We're Blind to Our True Condition

The Bible says we're dead in trespasses and sins - unconscious and blind to what we're really like. We're blind to eternity, God's love, God's power, and God's grace. For God to change and transform us, we have to allow Him to expose the wound, expose the areas of our life that we don't want anyone to know about.

Before knowing Jesus, many people think they're wonderful. They might even think they're already Christians. But God doesn't reveal our ugliness to put us down - He reveals it so He can deal with all those areas of our life: depression, worry, anxiety, anger, unkindness, and cruelty.

The Call to Cry Out

You were never meant to live this life on your own. You haven't got the answer to the problem of human nature and selfishness. Jesus died on the cross and wants to pour His love out on you.

God doesn't just hear our prayers - He hears our heart cry. When you're desperate enough, you don't have a conversation with God; you call out. If you don't know Jesus, just call on Him and say, "Help me."

How Does God Reveal Himself When We're Overwhelmed?

The story of Elisha and his servant in 2 Kings 6 provides a powerful example of God opening our eyes when we feel outnumbered and overwhelmed.

The Story of Elisha's Servant

When Elisha's servant woke up to find their city surrounded by enemy troops, horses, and chariots, he cried out in fear, "Oh no, sir, what will we do now?"

Elisha's response was remarkable: "Don't be afraid, for there are more on our side than on theirs." Then Elisha prayed, "O Lord, open his eyes and let him see."

When God opened the young man's eyes, he saw the hillside around Elisha filled with horses and chariots of fire from heaven.

Greater Is He That Is in You

If you are a Christian and God is raising you up, He won't allow you to just march up and down the parade ground forever. He's going to put you in battles, and sometimes you're going to feel outnumbered. But God will open your eyes to know that greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world.

When God opens your understanding to see this truth, it gives you authority over demonic power. All the armies of hell cannot take down what God has established when you understand who you are in Christ.

What Happens When God Shows Us His Plans?

The story of Saul's conversion on the road to Damascus illustrates how God opens our eyes to see what He's planned for our lives.

Saul's Transformation

Saul was traveling with warrants to arrest Christians when Jesus revealed Himself in risen glory. The encounter was so powerful that Saul collapsed and was struck blind. He had to be led to Damascus, where a disciple named Ananias was instructed to pray for him.

When Ananias laid hands on Saul and prayed, "immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he received his sight at once."

The Ongoing Process of Revelation

It's not sufficient to just be baptized in the Holy Spirit. After that, God will increasingly take scales off your eyes to see the dimension, power, and glory that is possible in Christ. He'll show you who you are in Christ.

Even Paul, writing to the mature Ephesian church later, prayed that God would give them "the spirit of wisdom and revelation" so "the eyes of your understanding, being enlightened, that you might know what is the hope of His calling."

What Should We Expect When Our Eyes Are Opened?

When God opens the eyes of our hearts, we begin to understand three crucial things:

The Hope of His Calling

Many wonderful Christians don't know their calling. They don't know how God has wired them up or what they're specifically called to do. When you discover your calling, you'll find that doing it energizes you rather than wearing you out. Every time you operate in your calling, you get stronger.

The Glory of Your Inheritance

You need to understand what you've been called to inherit. God has called you to inherit joy, peace, victory, and so much more. When the devil tries to steal these things, you need to fight back and reclaim what belongs to you.

The Exceeding Greatness of His Power

There are no limits to God - you're the one who puts limits on Him. God can do anything, including miracles. When Jesus said He wants to heal the sick, set the captives free, bind up the brokenhearted, and save the lost, that's all part of the gospel.

Life Application

This week, ask God to open the eyes of your heart in a fresh way. Give Him permission to reveal areas of your life that need His touch, show you His power in overwhelming circumstances, and help you understand your calling and inheritance in Him.

Consider these questions as you reflect on what God wants to reveal to you:

• Have you given God permission to examine every area of your life, or are there rooms you've kept locked?
• When you feel overwhelmed, do you remember that greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world?
• Do you know your specific calling and how God has uniquely wired you to serve Him?
• Are you fighting for your inheritance in Christ, or passively allowing the enemy to steal what belongs to you?

The challenge this week is simple but profound: pray daily for God to remove any scales from your eyes so you can see Him, yourself, and your circumstances from His perspective. Don't settle for spiritual blindness when God wants to give you divine vision.