I’m overdue for an eye appointment. Glasses have been a part of my life since the 6th grade… although I likely would have begun using them sooner had I not taken advantage of my better eye during elementary school eye exams. (I would always start by reading the letters with my better eye, then recite them all back by memory when testing my worse eye.)
The gift of sight is not something that I take for granted, especially in those glorious moments of putting on glasses or contacts and seeing things clearly (again or for the first time).
As a follower of Jesus, one of the beautiful things that I discover over and over is this: the life of the gospel invites us into an entirely new way of seeing the world, through the lens of the upside-down Kingdom of Jesus. From that new way of seeing, this good news invites us into a new way of acting, being, and living out the gift of this life that we get to lovingly share with God and neighbor.
The First Invitation of Jesus
In the beginning of the Gospel of John, one of the first things that Jesus invites his followers to do is to “come and see.”
As this Gospel describes it, Jesus walks past two of John’s disciples shortly after being baptized in the Jordan. Upon seeing him John cries out, “Look, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world!” At this, John’s two disciples eagerly follow Jesus down the road, curious to know this Messiah. As they are walking, Jesus turns and asks, “What do you want?”
“Teacher,” they respond, “where are you staying?”
“Come and see,” Jesus says.
In that moment, the disciples do go and see. In fact, they spend all day with Jesus. Afterwards they immediately begin to invite others to also come and see this Messiah. More and more people are quickly added to their number; some from Jesus’s direct invitation and some from the joyful excitement of others who have tasted a tiny bit of the wonder and goodness of this Messiah and cannot contain it for themselves. The excitement of their encounters with Jesus is contagious.
After the disciple Philip meets Jesus, he tells Nathanael that they have found the Messiah in Jesus of Nazareth.
But with Nathanael, there is a hard stop in his response.
“Nazareth?!” he replies incredulously. “Can anything good come from there?”
In this moment, I imagine that Philip takes a quiet pause. Then comes a soft shrug and a smile. “Come and see,” he says.
Nazareth was one of those places that was a “nothing” on the map; a place that people would pass over or pass by. It is said that Nazareth was insignificant and poor, perhaps even violent and of poor repute. But our Messiah chose to be there. God chose to enter as Immanuel in this place that was overlooked, avoided, looked down upon and pushed aside.
“Can anything good come from Nazareth?” Nathanael asks. The answer? “Come and see.”
God’s answer is the same for all of the “Nazareths” in our world today. Come and see. Come and see the beautiful work of the Kingdom that is springing up in your midst; the work of renewal and redemption happening in the places and people that are deemed most insignificant in the eyes of the world.
God Sightings
Members of InnerCHANGE, myself included, follow God’s invitation and call to corners of the world that are like the Nazareth where Jesus lived—places about which people hear and wonder, “Can anything good come from there?”
The first invitation that Jesus extends to his followers is to come and see. And just like the disciples who followed Jesus, seeing this Messiah among us in ordinary, challenging and beautiful places brings such life and joy that we cannot contain the good news. God has come, and God is here. Now. Since our God is Immanuel, God With Us, the Spirit is always moving, bringing hope, healing, life, love, and joy in the most beautiful of ways. In the midst of despair, there is deep hope. In the presence of death, there is life. In the darkness, there is a light that cannot and will never be overcome.
Learning to see these things is something that sustains me—feeding hope, truth and joy to my soul. It’s a journey that I hope and believe will continue all my life. One practice of learning to see God at work among us is an exercise called “God Sightings.” This practice was first developed by St. Ignatius of Loyola, and is a way to pay attention to how God has been at work in your day.
Practicing God sightings is simple. Toward the end of the day, you take a few moments to sit—five or ten minutes at most. You can center yourself for a moment, thank God for your day, breathe, and begin to remember moments when God showed up. These moments are often small things: the smile of a child, a refreshing breeze, a conversation, a beautiful flower, a verse from scripture, a moment of sensing hope or love, someone coming to your aid when you needed it. As these moments come to mind, write them down. Try to write down five or so for each day (though you can put down more if they come to mind!). Once you have your list, read over it again with gratitude and thank God for the gift of today. The more that you practice, the more you can see God at work. It’s like your eyes begin to have new lenses through which to see. Remembering that God is present, always, is a beautiful thing.
This small but powerful tool has brought much gratitude, hope, life, and joy to my day-to-day, opening my eyes even more deeply to the beautiful work and life of the Kingdom happening all around.
I’d encourage you to try it out this month, at least for a couple of weeks, and see how it goes. The joy and hope of the gospel is that our Lord Jesus is still alive and very much in our midst. And his call, echoing through the ages, still invites us to come and see.
Come and see the beauty, hope, love, life and joy of the Kingdom in your midst: in your home, in your community, at your work, at your school, even in the places or people you would rather avoid. It’s there. It’s everywhere. And learning to see it is a beautiful, transformative, lifelong adventure.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Annie Aeschbacher has been a member of Novo’s order among the poor, InnerCHANGE, since March 2016 and currently leads the InnerCHANGE L.A. team. She loves living and working in the Central American immigrant neighborhood of Westlake / MacArthur Park, building relationships with her generous and joyful neighbors, and seeing how God is at work in daily life. In her spare time, Annie loves hiking, Zumba, spending time with friends, and sitting down with a yummy hot beverage and a good book.