Anne Graham Lotz begins Chapter 6 (“Spiritual Blind Spots: You are Missing the Obvious”) of Wounded by God’s People by telling us that her mother Ruth suffered from macular degeneration in her later years. At one point Ruth told Anne that all she could see when she looked at Anne was “a blank spot framed by hair”.
Just like Hagar, our woundedness can cause significant blind spots- a spiritual macular degeneration. When the angel of the Lord gently questioned Hagar, he wasn’t asking for the facts- which he already knew. The angel questioned Hagar for her own benefit, so that she would see her own failures as well.
Anne notes that when we’re wounded, it’s so much easier to focus on the faults of the wounders. Even if we’re willing to admit some responsibility, in our eyes our backlash wasn’t as hurtful as their wounding. To help us focus, the author presents a series of questions, questions she’s asked herself:
1. How is our reaction today going to help us tomorrow?
2. Do we want our life characterized by our focus on our wounders or by our Christlike response?
3. Are we living our life for God’s glory or to exact revenge and justify our actions?
4. When was the last time we were conscious of God’s peace and joy flooding our hearts?
Anne asserts that it takes courage to explore the deep recesses of our hearts. But that’s where true healing occurs.
Today’s question: Which of Anne’s questions resonates most deeply with you? Please share.
Tomorrow’s blog: “The domino effect”
