Seeing Through Eyes of Love
Spiritual life works in us to change the way we see ourselves, each other, and the world around us.
Some of us believe spiritual life draws us into seeing more deeply or more clearly. Sometimes we become able to see things which have been invisible to us or were obscured. Spiritual life can reveal things which are contrary to what we have believed in the past.
I believe it is essential to spiritual life we begin to see through eyes of love.
Spiritual life is not necessarily about seeing more accurately or with greater insight. It is not about paying more attention to details or analyzing what we see.
How can spiritual life be alive in us if we see through eyes of anger or fear or jealousy?
The ways we see ourselves, each other, and the world around us shape how we experience them. Spiritual life draws us toward seeing through eyes of love.
When we look through eyes of love we begin to see love waiting for us all around us. We see love and experience love, and we begin to share sacred love.
The love we see floods into our hearts and minds and through us into the world.
Seeing Ourselves Through Eyes of Love
Many of us have a difficult time seeing ourselves through eyes of love.
Were we raised to try to be perfect, to look for weaknesses or find problems? Some of us are not able to see ourselves as strong, gifted, valuable people. Do we see ourselves as worthy of being seen through eyes of love? Some of us do not think we deserve to be loved.
Spiritual life draws me toward seeing myself through eyes of love.
Contemplative practices in particular help me look into aspects of my life in more loving ways. Listening to stillness helps me learn how to let go of expectations I have been taught to carry. Taking time each day to pause and be open to myself shows me how to see myself through eyes of love.
Seeing ourselves through eyes of love is a good first step for us. We spend the most time with ourselves and know ourselves well. It can be a challenge to appreciate we are worthy of being loved.
Learning to see ourselves through eyes of love is how we begin to see others in loving ways.
Seeing Each Other Through Eyes of Love
I begin to recognize other people deserve to be loved as I learn to see myself through eyes of love.
Many of the things other people do which most annoy me the most are things I tend to do myself.
People change when you begin to see them through the eyes of love. How we see them changes, and they respond to how we see them and act toward them.
There are people who do mean, reprehensible things. Seeing them with eyes of love does not mean liking them or condoning what they have done.
Seeing someone with eyes of love means it is not impossible for me to empathize with them. I can relate to how they might feel and understand why they might act the way they have.
When I see someone through eyes of love I listen to what they say, and what they might not say. I do not pretend to listen while thinking about what I will say next.
I do not project my own expectations on them or pass judgment on them, even when I stay silent.
Beginning to see other people through eyes of love often opens us to the world around us.
Seeing the World Around Us Through Eyes of Love
When we see the world through the eyes of love we recognize its potential.
Like seeing ourselves and the people around us, love allows us to see the possibilities in the world. Even when events threaten to overwhelm us, love helps us see what we can do to make a difference.
Opening our eyes of love shows us how connected we are to things happening in distant places. We begin to recognize the network of relationships which brings us together.
As we see in love we appreciate how what we do can effect global situations. Love shows us how our actions make a difference and inspires us to do what we can.
Seeing the world through love allows us to meet people from all over the world and love them.
When we open our eyes love shows us the world does not work the way we thought it did.
Spiritual life shows us ourselves, people around us, and the world are not what we expected. Seeing through love transforms us and how we experience life.
Seeing Spiritual Life Through Eyes of Love
Spiritual life living in us even transforms how we experience and understand spiritual life.
When we see through the eyes of love we recognize spiritual life is more than we assumed it was.
We begin to appreciate spiritual life is more than listening quietly to someone preaching at us. Spiritual life is not about being nice to people or something we do once a week.
Spiritual life is powerful. As spiritual life comes alive in us in new ways each day it changes how we experience our lives. It shows us the deeper truths about ourselves, people we know, and the world around us.
Many of us thought we understood spiritual life, we had it under control. Spiritual life teaches us it is beyond our understanding and not something we can control.
If we can understand it and control it, it is not real spiritual life but an imitation.
Spiritual life is always changing the way we see everything. It transforms our eyes into eyes of love and we start to see everything in new ways.
Each moment is an opportunity to see something new.
How can we practice seeing through eyes of love today?
What could seeing through eyes of love help us see this week?
[Image by orangeacid]
Greg Richardson is a spiritual life mentor and coach in Southern California. He is a recovering attorney and a lay Oblate with New Camaldoli Hermitage near Big Sur, California. Greg’s website is StrategicMonk.com, and his email address is StrategicMonk@gmail.com.
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