In John 9:1-34, Jesus heals a man who was born blind. The people asked the question, "Who sinned, this man or his parents?" There wasn't any other option for someone to be blind. It had to be sin. Jesus gave them a completely different perspective. It didn't fit their little formula: if someone is blind, it is because of sin.
What kind of formulas am I using when I see things? Am I open to something new? I can't put Jesus into a formula saying, "This is the way he works." Jesus doesn't fit human formulas. He is free to work in mysterious ways that baffle the religious people.
When the leaders saw this newly-healed blind man, they couldn't accept the truth that Jesus healed him. They wouldn't believe what was obvious, right in front of their eyes. Am I blind to what Jesus is doing because it doesn't fit my formula? When the truth is staring me in the face, do I make rationalizations because if it is true, it will shake all the foundations I had set up for myself?
Lord, keep me open to the new things you are doing! Don't let me get stuck in formulas and procedures. Keep my eyes on you and all you want to do in me and through me and around me.
