Do You See What I See?

It was Saturday before our Adult Christmas Party on Monday night. While the choir was practicing for the Christmas Program, I checked the sign-up sheet. Nope – we hadn’t signed up, and I didn’t see our daughter’s name on there. I called her and she said, “I signed up. My name is on there.”

I ran down the names, beginning with pastor's signature – his name and his wife – no, I did not see her name signed up anywhere on the sheets. She said, “Does that say page 1 of 4?” “Yes.” “My name is on that first page.”

Poor child. She must have thought she put it there. She said, “Look at the first line.”

My only excuse is that the eyes looked for what I expected to see. A typed form that had columns for menu items, names and with signatures in varying ink colors. What had NOT registered was the first line below the typed column headers – with her name typed in.

I expected signed names, not typed names, so that’s all my mind registered. Reminds me of scripture:

Having eyes, see ye not? and having ears, hear ye not? and do ye not remember? (Mark 8:18 KJV)

Jesus’ disciples had just left a group of Pharisees who had been tempting Him by saying a sign would convince them to believe:

And the Pharisees came forth, and began to question with him, seeking of him a sign from heaven, tempting him. And he sighed deeply in his spirit, and saith, Why doth this generation seek after a sign? verily I say unto you, There shall no sign be given unto this generation. (Mark 8:11-12 KJV)

Later, on the ship, Jesus tells the disciples:

And he charged them, saying, Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of Herod. (Mark 8:15 KJV)

They never considered the lesson He had in mind:

Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, neither had they in the ship with them more than one loaf.  . . .  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have no bread. (Mark 8:14, 16 KJV)

Like me, they did not look beyond their own expectations to see the lesson Jesus taught. They had the example of His providing bread and fish for thousands, yet thought He was concerned because they had no bread. They had seen the encounter with their own eyes. They had heard the temptation with their own ears, but did not apply it to themselves.

Especially here at Christmas, how much of His story are we seeing, hearing and applying? Do we see the manger without including the cross? Do we miss the gift among all our giving? Does our physical gift include our love? Do we remember that Christmas is explained in:

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16 KJV)

Or, do we overlook that first line, seeing only what we expect?