Ewald Schmidt

“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you…” Ephesians 1:18a (NIV)

People who experience the same situation can react in totally different ways. Viktor Frankl, a Jewish psychologist, was a survivor of the Nazi concentration camps. In his book “Man’s Search for Meaning” he wrote that the line between life and death was extremely thin, and came down to only one word. Hope. Some people found no reason to keep on suffering and lost all hope - they did not survive. But others found a reason to keep going - they had a reason to live, something that gave them hope. That enabled them to keep on going, surviving; conquering the worst experience imaginable until freedom arrived.

When Paul wrote his Epistles, the Christians of the first century had probably already experienced rejection and even persecution by the Roman Empire. He sought a way to encourage them to persevere. When we experience difficult times, the way we look at life has a huge impact on us. When we lose all hope, we do not make it. Paul prays that Christians will receive new eyes, to see the world and their circumstances in a new way. These new eyes he calls the “eyes of our heart”. When God opens the eyes of our heart, we start seeing hope all around us. Our new life in Christ began when he called us to follow him, and we answered by following. The path of faith might not always be easy, sometimes we also endure some suffering, and walk through valleys where the shadows of death look frightening around us. When we see through the eyes of our heart, the eyes of faith, we will see that we are never alone, the Lord is our Shepherd guiding us every step of the way. His presence makes all the difference. He has called us to follow him, and that journey has a good destination. So while today might be difficult, Christians always live in hope that our future is secure in him!

Prayer:  Lord, I do not always understand the shadows and the valleys on the path of my life. Sometimes I feel alone and afraid, facing the challenges ahead of me. Please open the eyes of my heart, that I can always see your presence in my difficult times. Help me to remember the Hope that you have given me, and thank you that my future is always secure in you! Amen