San Diego is stunning, especially at night! Ocean views, perfect weather and a relaxed resort atmosphere, brings tourists to this area from all around the world. However, like many beautiful cities, sometimes LOOKS CAN BE DECEIVING. Recently, God reminded me of this in a very interesting way. Let's just say it was an EYE OPENING experience!
Have you ever prayed for God to BREAK YOUR HEART for the things that break His, or asked Him to OPEN YOUR EYES to what He is doing? Those are great prayers, but such requests usually require a willingness to readjust our perspective! Seeing our comfortable, familiar surroundings through new eyes (His eyes) takes some effort and can be disturbing.
The first clue, that my evening was NOT going to be "business as usual", happened as I tried to exit our neighborhood. First, I came upon a man and woman standing RIGHT in the middle of road, ARGUING LOUDLY with each other! Wasn’t sure if they were husband-wife or boyfriend-girlfriend? Whoever they were, they seemed completely oblivious to me, to traffic, or to the fact that their car was blocking the road! In frustration, I maneuvered around them just in time to meet a sedan fully of teenagers who were hanging out the windows yelling #&*@! obscenities while making an illegal left turn, just missing me!
Effectually I made my way to the local market. By this time I was thinking, THIS IS SUCH A WEIRD NIGHT. I found out quickly it was going to get stranger as the evening progressed! After parking my car, I walked to the store entrance. Couldn't help but notice the two high school GIRLS kissing and hanging all over each other in the parking lot area. Again my thoughts were, MAYBE IT'S A FULL MOON OR SOMETHING?? Once inside the store, I observed a very drunk man in tattered clothes, trying (without much luck) to dig some change out of his pocket to buy a lottery ticket. (Does it seem odd to anybody else, that people with very little are willing to gamble away what little they do have?) By now it was about 8:30pm, I'd finished purchasing a few items and was headed home.
On the way to my car, I passed through some people who were sitting in an outdoor food court enjoying their pizza slices and ice cream cones. SUDDENLY...A GANG OF 8-9 LATINO GUYS JUMPED OUT FROM THE DARK. They violently attacked, kicked and stabbed another guy who was standing about about 30 feet from me!
WHAT'S GOING ON?? I felt like I was back in Bangkok's Red Light District, but I wasn't. This was beautiful San Diego! I was in a local strip mall with little twinkle lights hanging from palm trees. Exhausted parents with strollers full of toddlers relaxed near the fountain, a few retired men were enjoying their coffees and discussing sports!
Then it dawned on me- GOD HAD HEARD MY PRAYER. He was allowing me to SEE my familiar neighborhood through new eyes, through HIS perspective!
It was as if I could hear God saying- “You want to know what causes my heart to grieve? OPEN your eyes! Take time to really SEE those around you. Broken people, crumbling relationships, immorality, poverty and violence are all around you. Don’t be deceived by the facade of beauty and affluence.
After the initial shock and police reports, I had more time to process the “events” of that evening. It was then I realized....not one, but TWO people had been stabbed at the food court that night; an unsuspecting latino youth.... and the other person was ME. God’s “TRUTH” had sliced right through my clouded perspective!
HELP JESUS, HELP. Without You, we are lost and desperate people! Thank you for eyes to see what grieves your heart. Forgive me for the many times I’ve witnessed similar scenes (like tonight’s events) and simply ignored them, LOOKED the other way, or WORSE...I saw them, and did nothing! Forgive me for the times I’ve complained about the moral and spiritual decline that surrounds me, but did nothing more. Forgive me for the times I became aggravated, shocked or disgusted, but did nothing more.
Oh God, compel me to action, to intercession, to LOVE. Push me beyond my own complacency and apathy. Help me to be a BOLD defender of the weak. When it comes to caring for broken people, help to be a RADICAL LOVER, COMPASSIONATE, A DANGEROUS THREAT TO THE KINGDOM OF DARKNESS AND INJUSTICE. PLEASE HELP ME TO BE MORE LIKE JESUS
