Rabbi Nathan’s sermon last week shared the wisdom of how God sees us. His point was that we often don’t know who we are because we don’t know whose we are. There so often is a disconnect between our life experiences and what our Abba sees for He sees our true selves, and yet we often suffer.

If I am so beautiful, why am I bullied? Why do others dislike me? Why do I hate the way I look? Why do I fail at so many things? Why do I have to struggle to pay my bills? Why am I not good enough to get that promotion? Why do my kids misbehave? Why do others have so much and I have so little? The list seems endless at times. . .

There actually is no list at all. Rather, we sometimes are blind to His Presence.

We are beautiful for we were created in His image. If we are being bullied, it’s not because of who we are, but rather, because of something going on in the minds of those who bully. They can’t see their beauty, and so the cycle of unloving behavior perpetuates. Our individual looks are amazing, each freckle as intended. We just don’t have the eyes to see it. We are so financially blessed, beyond comprehension. We just can’t manage our blessings at times. As for those unruly children, when we are reminded of the same frustrations our Abba must have with some of our actions, how much more understanding we become as parents. How much happier we feel when we are grateful for our portion rather than when we compare it to that of others.

Our Abba always, always is loving us, unfailingly, seeing the real us. On the flip side, how consistently and constantly are we loving Him? How often do we not even see His Presence?

In the Israeli series I referenced last week, we mused over the family that panicked over the crucifix they found in their home. In their world, Yeshua was a scary thought. And yet, His Presence was in their home in ways they didn’t recognize. They just didn’t have the eyes to see Him.

There are many scenes showing the wife washing the feet of her husband each day when he returned home. Foot washing in ancient times was a well known custom, and wives were expected to wash their husband’s feet as a sign of love. Foot washing had many dimensions and reasons in ancient cultures and specifically in Judaism. So the custom was part of daily life. Yet when the husband’s activities displeased his wife, she in anger refused to show her love in this way to him.

When Yeshua washed the feet of His disciples, it turned this ancient custom on its head, for the Master was washing the feet of the servant. When Rabbi Nathan’s family washes each other’s feet, the ritual brings forth the unconditional love our Abba has for each family member, as they learn to see themselves through the loving eyes of Yeshua. When that occurs the daily disappointments are washed away as each is bathed in His Love.

The wife in the show was unable to wash her husband’s feet for she at that moment did not feel love toward him, a completely natural reaction. Yet when we know Yeshua, when we remind ourselves to act in His ways, when we stop for that moment before following a negative inclination to look inside our hearts to where He dwells, we can wash the feet of another who disappoints us. His model is everywhere around us when we open our eyes to see it, when we listen to that deeper place in our heart where He dwells. He is in the room. He is in the ritual, just waiting for each to see Him.

Yeshua is everywhere (!!) even in Israeli Netflix shows that can’t see Him yet. He is in traditional Jewish prayers even when some cannot yet see the references. He is seeable in the design of matzahs, suggestive of stipes and piercings. He is visible in the intricate designs of butterfly wings and spider webs. He is in each forgiving conversation and act of lovingkindness. He is in the beauty of every imperfection and loss.

When we see through His eyes, when we see this world in that way, when we see the real you, when we see ourselves and this world in that way, we are able to live today with a hint of the amazing World to Come.

What a blessing!

Shabbat shalom.

Diane