Mud and Sight

Mud and Sight

A young seminary student was struggling with whether God was calling her into pastoral ministry — a question her tradition was divided on. She spent months in prayer, seeking clarity. A wise older woman in her church told her: 'Do the obedient thing that's in front of you. Clarity comes through movement, not through standing still waiting for a clearer sign.' She took a small step: she began leading a Bible study. Then another step. Then another. Years later she said: 'I never received the dramatic sign I was looking for. But each step of obedience brought more light than the last. I can look back now and see the whole path. I couldn't see it from the beginning.'

The blind man in John 9 received mud on his eyes and an instruction: go wash. He could not see. He could not verify the result in advance. He obeyed without certainty of outcome. 'So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.' The healing was not in the mud — it was in the obedience to the Word of Jesus. This is a pattern throughout the Gospels: the instruction seems odd, the obedience seems unreasonable, and the miracle follows the movement of faith. We often want sight before obedience. Jesus often gives sight through obedience. What has He asked you to do that you have been waiting to do until you can see the result first? The pool of Siloam may be closer than you think.