To my fellow kings and queens,

We are all blind. Whether it is by choice or by nature or by attack - none or us are seeing clearly. Shards of colored glass lie entombed in our eyes. They are formed in the uncertain fires of past experience, future possibilities, choices, and mostly life. Colored glass from colored sand. Made from sand that enters our lives at different times, the first of which is born into us in our DNA. Life provides the flames that transform the sand into colored glass. They become the lenses through which we view our lives, our world, our neighbors, our everything. Reds, blues, greens, yellows, blacks, browns, and all manner of shades in between and beyond. Our paradigms are as unique as any beautiful creation of God. And they are as flawed as everything in our world since the fall. In the worst of cases, we are more than partially blinded by the glass, we are in the complete darkness of a blindfolded life. In our blindness we pretend to learn. We lay claims of knowledge and wisdom on ourselves and others; however, those claims fall on foundations of ignorance. This concept should not be lamented nor provide a hold for despair to cling to; on the contrary, we should find hope herein. Hope that each of us will have our blindfolds removed. That clues of the beautiful mystery of life will be revealed unto us. Strange and sad how some of us clench to the bars and chains of our own darkness and demise while freedom and light are an open hand away. A hand called truth. Through my lens, a hand named Jesus. Placing both our hands in the open one allows the other free hand of truth to remove the blindfold. Walking into the sunlight from a dark place can hurt your eyes. Light, truth, beauty they're all like that; when we are accustomed to darkness, to lies, to ugliness the opposite hurts and repulses us at first experience. In truth, real knowledge and wisdom lands and grows from a solid foundation: soil, rock, and the wellspring of life. Solomon, the wisest man, says that the heart is the wellspring of life. In a healthy heart truth lives and thrives. There was a man whom had his blindfold removed while traveling a road to destroy a group of religious and political revolutionaries. He then chose to join and ultimately become the most outspoken and influential man of that revolutionary group. His life and words have impacted and transformed billions of people since his blindfold was removed. I cannot imagine the world had he not been given new sight.

To quote a common cliché: 'crystal clear' - to view through a lens without color or cloud. Of this lie we are all guilty. We are all guilty of this blasphemy - to assume, at some point in life, that we can see or know or understand in full any thing, idea, or being supplants God with us. By revelation of truth we exchange large, dark glass for smaller, clearer glass. The smaller and clearer the glass becomes, the more we begin to see the world as God does. But never, in this life, will we remove all the glass. In most cases we need the help of both God and someone with better vision than us to exchange the glass in our eyes. Divine intervention, then human assistance.

Proverbs 25:2
It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of kings to search out a matter.

Acts 9:3-19
As he was traveling, it happened that he was approaching Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him; and he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?" And he said, "Who are You, Lord?" And the voice said, "I am Jesus whom you are persecuting, but get up and enter the city, and it will be told you what you must do." The men who traveled with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one. Saul got up from the ground, and though his eyes were open, he could see nothing; and leading him by the hand, they brought him into Damascus. And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank. Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias; and the Lord said to him in a vision, "Ananias." And he said, "Here I am, Lord." And the Lord said to him, "Get up and go to the street called Straight, and inquire at the house of Judas for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying, and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him, so that he might regain his sight." But Ananias answered, "Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much harm he did to Your saints at Jerusalem; and here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on Your name." But the Lord said to him, "Go, for he is a chosen instrument of Mine, to bear My name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel; for I will show him how much he must suffer for My name's sake." So Ananias departed and entered the house, and after laying his hands on him said, "Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road by which you were coming, has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit." And immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he regained his sight, and he got up and was baptized; and he took food and was strengthened.

Ephesians 1:9-10
And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment—to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.

Besides choice and nature, we are under attack - attack by an enemy, who comes to steal, kill, insult, and destroy. The enemy has come in many different forms; one form has been that of a snake. A snake covered in scales. An enemy coming to steal sight and light. A man has his sight restored and

from his eyes fell

something

like

scales.

May you put your life into the open hand of truth and find sight, light, love, beauty, wisdom, and purpose revealed unto you.