Day 14: Opportunities to Learn

As soon as Husband left the house with Huckle and Sally at 7:45 this morning, I sat down on the couch with a mug of tea and my Bible study. I can't begin to tell you how much joy that gives me.

• The peace and quiet after the hustle of kid waking, cereal pouring, fruit cutting, hair brushing, shirt buttoning, backpack packing, lunch making, bicker halting, kid rushing
• The comfort of the couch, my fuzzy robe and slippers
• The atmosphere set by a sleepy cat beside me (napping already!), no sounds except a ticking clock and the house wren guarding its nest outside our patio door.
• The terrific Bible study that I look forward to each morning. 

But that restful scene isn't the joy that struck me at 8:25 as I finished my Bible study: not only was the rest of the day still ahead of me, but by 8:25 I had already learned something significant, something that changed the way I think.

I'll share:
The expression "the apple of my eye" is well known. When I hear it, I imagine a father doting on his   little girl who is all dressed up in a frilly, flouncy, ribbony dress. She's twirling or dancing on the lawn, confident in her Daddy's adoring love. He's standing there with his arms crossed, thinking, "That's my girl!"

What I didn't realize is that this expression comes from the Bible.

• Deuteronomy 32:10, Moses' song, after giving the law to the people (which forms them into a nation), reminds them that God watched over Jacob [figurative for the Israelites] in the desert and "guarded him as the apple of his eye"
• Psalm 17:8, the Psalmist pleads with God to hear his prayer and protect him from enemies; he pleads that God would "Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings from the wicked who assail me"
• Zechariah 2:8, An angel tells the exiled people of Israel that God will punish the nations who plundered them "for whoever touches you touches the apple of his eye"

Here's what I learned: the expression "the apple of my eye" refers to the pupil of the eye. I never thought of that! It gives me so much to think about, so much that I will mull over this morning as I go about my responsibilities. Here are some beginnings to thoughts.

• The image is not of God's love for us (though he loves us dearly!) or of us as cute children that Daddy pets and pampers. Rather, the image is of us as a working and important part of God. This ties into the New Testament image of the church as the body of Christ. God sees us as that close to Him, that essential to Him! As God's eye, does this mean He uses us to see His world, to interact with it and perhaps color his impressions of it? Does he use us in that important of a role? If so, it's shocking and intimidating -- it changes how I need to view the world. I need Him to cover me with a contact lens that helps me see the world through His love and grace! 
• Also, all these verses are about protecting and guarding. The pupil of the eye is not only essential but delicate. It needs to be preserved to allow vision. Also, the pupil cannot be injured without its owner being fully aware or without its owner being seriously impacted. Likewise, God is fully aware of anything injurious to us. And He is impacted by our troubles. Do you see the difference? He's not the daddy proud of his little girl but perhaps distracted from watching her by a phone call or his own needs. Imagine that she gets stung by a bee: no matter how much her daddy sympathizes, he doesn't actually feel her pain. If we are the pupil of God's eye, He is not turned away from us by a distraction -- we are always in His vision. And He doesn't just sympathize with our pain -- He feels our pain.

What a joy to have a fresh perspective on an old saying so crusted over with cliche that it's origins and full meaning have been lost to me. I'll be mulling this over all day.