Give Me Your Eyes

It was his second day on the job, and I was one proud Momma. Ben looked so handsome in his uniform. Gone were the saggy jeans and t-shirt replaced by belted pants and a polo. I couldn't have been more pleased. I glided with my handful of items up behind a female customer who had a cart load of groceries in Ben's checkout line, a smile perched on my face.

Then she turned to me after adding a few more cans to the conveyor belt, her lips scrunched toward her nose, eyes bulging, cradling her finger in her hand, "I always break a nail on these shopping carts." Miss Sourpuss hissed.

"Oh, I hate when that happens." I responded with a smile, wondering what it was about the carts in this particular store that caused her to break a nail every week. Poor thing. I thought.

I looked toward Ben who was scanning and rescanning and rescanning a piece of meat. Ugh oh, disaster on register three.

Miss Sourpuss looked at Ben. "I'm sorry, Mam, but this rang up twice, and I can't get the machine to take it off." He said.

Then Miss Sourpuss looked at me, lips scrunched toward her nose, bulging eyes rolling...I couldn't resist. With shoulders back, head held high, and a smile on my face, I giggled, "That's my son...second day on the job. He's still learning."

Immediately Miss Sourpuss' eyes stopped rolling, her lips relaxed and drifted away from her nose then sauntered into a smile. "Oh my, I've been there. " She said. Then she turned toward Ben and nodded, "I've been there."

I was struck by the moment. Until Miss Sourpuss broke her nail and spoke to me, I saw her as just another person in a check-out line, until I told Miss Sourpuss that the "idiot" behind the cash register was my son, she saw him as just another person making her day a little more miserable, and until Ben saw Miss Sourpuss change her attitude, she was just another unhappy customer. And God saw all of us, three human beings, all with their own stories--all precious in His sight.

Lord, give me your eyes.


Check out Brandon Heath's music video "Give Me Your Eyes". Just click on the title.