It’s funny how two people can see the same object in very different ways. When I see an empty strawberry container, I see plastic that should be tossed into a recycling bin. When my seven-year-old son sees that same container, he sees the frame for a Viking ship that he will build with pipe cleaners, paper, and lots of tape.
So, too, with people. In nursing, we are trained to see beyond the physical needs of a patient and to recognize that he or she is a whole being in need of care. In 2 Corinthians 5, Paul encourages his readers to see other people through spiritual eyes--God’s eyes--and to respond accordingly.
A Different View
Reflect on this passage from 2 Corinthians 5:16-20.
16 So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view…[God] reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.
Paul is saying that followers of Jesus should see the world differently, not “from a worldly point of view.” Instead, we are to see ourselves as “Christ’s ambassadors” whose job is to assist in reconciling others to God.
This means that if we are to see others with God’s eyes, we will see them as people in need of reconciliation with God. Others desperately need God just as much as we need God, and we get can invite others to know God!
What If?
What could your workplace be like if you saw others through God’s eyes and recognized their spiritual needs? How would you view your colleagues and co-workers differently? How about if you looked at nursing students you precept or the administration of your institution as God would see them?
Commit for a day to seeing others as God sees them. As you move through your workplace, ask God to reveal to you his heart for them. How does this change how you are thinking and feeling?
When we see our co-workers through God’s eyes, we naturally want them to get started or to grow in their spiritual journey. A nurse group that studies Scripture or integrates faith through nursing practice is a realistic way to do this. Take a step of faith and particularly consider inviting someone who does not know Jesus to join your NCF or faith community.
May the Lord enable you to see the world through his eyes!
This post by IVCF staff member Timothy Lin originally posted on September 12, 2017. Tim directs IVCF student ministry in Michigan.
Email Christy Secor if you’re curious about participating in or starting an NCF nurse group. Peruse the NCF website for personal and professional spiritual care resources.
