One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual place. – 1 Samuel 3:2

Today's Scripture Reading (May 13, 2025): 1 Samuel 3

How is your sight? Many years ago, I lost my glasses. I was on a four-hour flight going to visit some family. At the time, I only needed my glasses for seeing distances, which meant I wore them when I was driving or watching television or other long-distance activities, but when it came to reading, I didn't need them, so it had become my habit to take them off. When I fly, I read. Shortly after takeoff, I removed my glasses and placed them in a case and in the seat pocket in front of me. Then, I became engrossed in my book. When the plane landed at its destination, I reached into the pocket in front of me, but there were no glasses. 

I admit, there was a moment of panic. I was scheduled to be in the area for a few weeks but needed glasses. So, I waited until the plane was empty, and then, with the help of the flight attendants, I started to search for my glasses. But they were not there, anywhere. The glasses had disappeared. Luckily, I had a pair of prescription sunglasses, so for the rest of my stay, they were what I was wearing. I wore my sunglasses regardless of whether there was enough sun to need them (Cue Corey Hart's "[I wear my] Sunglasses at Night"), even if what I was doing was watching television in my room during the evening.

What came out of that experience was that I decided to get eye surgery. I now have monovision, which just means that I use my right eye to see distance and my left eye to read. Enough years have passed, that sometimes I am starting to struggle a little with reading. I now have a pair of trifocal glasses, but to be honest, I find them fairly useless. When I need to read, sometimes a cheap dollar store pair of readers works much better than my expensive trifocals. My worsening eyesight seems to be just another part of getting older.

Eli was getting older, and his sight was beginning to fail. It happens to many of us. However, a bigger problem for Eli was that his spiritual sight had failed. Israel's penultimate Judge and High Priest must have had a close relationship with God at one point, but that relationship had stalled. The failing point for Eli seems to have come over the issue of his family. Eli had refused to discipline his sons when they had violated the laws of God. Now, it has reached the point where God has chosen to speak to a boy living with Eli instead of Eli himself.

It is incredible how quickly our spiritual sight can begin to fail when we consistently say no to God. It was a reality for Eli and a continual warning for us. If we want to hear God's voice, we must be willing to allow our hearts to soften and show a willingness to listen to his still, small voice, even when it goes against what we want to hear. 

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: 1 Samuel 4