Looking Through

A few decades ago, “Magic Eye” images like the one below were trendy. You would look at the picture a certain way, and a 3D object would “magically” pop out of it. Unfortunately, I could never master the technique or see what others saw.

Until…one day, one of the students at Hamilton Heights said, “Mr. Stone, I’m going to help you.” He held the picture a few feet away and told me to try to look through the picture to see his stomach. As I began focusing “through the picture,” a giraffe popped out of the conglomeration, floating magically in front of the abstract background. By “looking through” the obvious I could see the ultimate.

Listen to the words of Hebrews 12:2 (NLT), “Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame." Can you see it? Behind the cross, the shame, the pain, was the “joy awaiting Him.” Jesus looked through the cross and saw the joy.
And it is there for you as well. When your heart is crushed, when your cross seems too heavy to bear, look beyond the pain, and see the joy awaiting those who remain faithful.

Duke Stone
After 40 years in full-time ministry, I try to see how the little things in life speak big things about God. This blog is an attempt to share with you the many ways I see the love of God in the ordinary things of life.