BLIND SPOTS

“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?  How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”  Matthew 7:3-5

What are blind spots?

Most motor vehicles have blind spots – those places in the rear view mirror where a vehicle behind you is obscured for a moment or on the sides of the windscreen that block your vision of an oncoming vehicle.   If you are not vigilant, a blind spot can be the cause of a serious accident.

We can also have blind spots in our characters or behaviour patterns, flaws of which we are unaware but which cause offense to other people; habits, attitudes, character traits, moods, reactions or responses to people or situations.

These blinds spots very often reveal themselves in the way we treat others. The things we don’t like in others are often a reflection of what is in our own lives. A judgmental attitude reflects a heart that is proud and sets itself above others without realizing that it is a mirror of one’s own life.

We may be moody, critical, sarcastic or angry and be unaware of the way our words or behaviour affects others.  We don’t see any wrong in the way we treat other people and we go on our merry way leaving a trail of emotional injury behind us.

How can we discover and deal with our blind spots so that we can foster harmony in our families, in the church and with friends and work colleagues?

I can think of at least three ways to deal with our blinds spots.

Firstly, we need to be honest. If we refuse to acknowledge our faults, we are fooling no-one but ourselves.  God’s grace will come to us when we are honest with ourselves and with Him. It is foolish to believe that we are above reproach. How much better to recognize that we, like everyone else, are capable of the very things we see and hate in others.

Secondly, we need humility, before God and men.  Pride refuses to acknowledge our faults and do something about them.  Humility allows God to change us. We are all on a journey towards transformation but it can only happen when we humble ourselves and are willing to repent and to respond to the need to change.

Thirdly, we need accountability, a loving, caring person who will help us monitor our progress. This will also take honesty and humility but the outcome will be peace.  

If we are really serious with God, dealing with blind spots will go a long way towards building unity in our families and in the body of Christ.