Eleanor Gathings stopped by my office recently to share a poem about missions that she wrote several years ago.  She recently pulled it out again and shared it with her Women on Mission group.  She gave permission for me to share it.

A Change of Vision

God said, “Open Your Eyes,:
“See as I see,”
I looked and saw His constant creation of color
Exploding in the reds, the yellows, the whites,
The greens, the pinks, the purples, the burgundies,
Of the leaves and flowers of the summer and fall.
I saw the colorful tow and four-footed creatures
Here and in the wild.
I saw the beauty of the free-flying birds,
The butterflies,
And the graceful creatures of the sea.
He said, “There are my gifts
To my greatest creation,
Mankind, my children, created in my image.”

God said, “Look again.”
“See as I see.”
I looked and saw again His constant creation of color
Coming forth in the many colors of His children,
The myriad hues of their skins
In Asisa, in Africa, in the Americas,
And in the many islands of the Atlantic
And Pacific oceans.
But I also saw the lame, the blind, and
Those who are sick and sad
Of body, mind, and spirit.
He siad, “These are my children, too.
Your brothers and sisters.”

God said, “Now open your heart.”
“Feel as I feel.”
And I felt the pain of thow who face
Hunger, who face violence
In the streets of Afghanistan, of Iraq,
Of Syria, of Libya, of Nigeria, of Somalia.
I felt the hopelessness of those who live in the
refugee camps of the world.
I felt the helplessness of the veterans and the jobless
Who must live in the homeless shelters of America,
There may be one in your town!
I felt the horror of those caught up in human trafficking
And who feel there’s no way to escape.
Again God said, “There are my children, too,
Your brothers and sisters.”

Now He said,
“You are my child and their kin.
If you see as I see, and feel as I feel,
And you know me,
Are you doing anything
That they may know me, too?
Will you give, will you pray,
WIll you minister to them in my Name?
I’m depending on you.”

             – Eleanor Gathings, Louisville, Kentucky