Face Time: Seeing with the Eyes of Christ

If you’re on Instagram and don't follow National Geographic, do it. They post some really beautiful photography and recently, they've been posting some striking portraits of real people from around the world. Take a look at this one. What do you see?

This seems obvious, but I've realized that when I'm willing to really look at someone, I see them. It is said that the eyes are the windows to the soul, right? Well, after this boy's face made it’s first impression on me, I spent a little more time looking at him. To my surprise, the longer I gazed, the more his personality presented itself to me, and the more I felt for him. I started to see different emotions and thoughts. I saw the expression on his face shift and change. Did his mom force him to get this new haircut? Was he sad? Did he just get punished? I found myself wondering what he was thinking and what he was feeling. Then, I wondered what would happen if I were to look at the people that I know in the same way.

Does it ever bother you when you’re trying to talk to someone who is always checking their phone? Maybe you are one of those people. It's ok. I’m guilty too. Sometimes, we don’t even realize when we’ve forgotten to make eye contact with the people that are right in front of us. Think about it: when you get home from school or practice, when you're checking out at Target, or going through the drive-through at In-n-Out, how often do you look up?

Maybe eye contact is more important than we realize.

What would I see if I took the time to look you in the eye? Would I see joy? Sadness? Frustration? No doubt, I'd get a little insight into who you are and what you're going through. It might even make me more understanding and more merciful towards others.

This is good to keep in mind when we find ourselves face to face with people that we find most difficult to love. Let’s be honest, people can be annoying, clingy, obnoxious, or just plain mean, but there's always something in their eyes that can provide an answer to the question, “Why?”

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, in his encyclical Deus Caritas Est (God is Love), says that it’s possible to love the person you don’t like, or even know! He says, “Seeing with the eyes of Christ, I can give to others...the look of love which they crave.” Everyone wants and needs to know that they are loved. When we have a relationship with Christ, we can learn to see with his eyes, not just our own. And in his eyes, every person is a beloved son or daughter of the God, the Father. If I don’t have a relationship with Christ, I can’t see with his eyes. And if I can’t see with his eyes, I can’t love with his heart.

Making the decision to put my phone away, look up, and make eye contact is a simple way for me to begin to love more like Christ. Now, I don’t recommend walking up to someone and saying, “Hey, come here so I can stare at you for a minute.” That would be creepy. What I do recommend are these three simple tips:

• Make eye contact when you’re talking or listening to someone, even if the interaction is only a few seconds long.

• Observe people loving and serving others. This will surely give you more reasons to appreciate them.

• Thank God for the good work that he is doing in and through the people in your life. Every artist loves to hear their work being praised, and God is the artist behind all of creation; including the people that we find the most difficult to love.

During this Year of Mercy, and as we begin this Lenten season, think about giving up things that keep you from seeing and loving like Christ. Pope Francis wrote a beautiful prayer for the Year of Mercy. Print it out and put it in your room somewhere (Here's the Link). Let's pray it together now...

Lord Jesus Christ,

You have taught us to be merciful like the heavenly Father, and have told us that whoever sees you sees Him. Show us your face and we will be saved. Your loving gaze freed Zacchaeus and Matthew from being enslaved by money; the adulteress and Magdalene from seeking happiness only in created things; made Peter weep after his betrayal, and assured Paradise to the repentant thief. Let us hear, as if addressed to each one of us, the words that you spoke to the Samaritan woman: “If you knew the gift of God!” You are the visible face of the invisible Father, of the God who manifests his power above all by forgiveness and mercy: let the Church be your visible face in the world, its Lord risen and glorified. You willed that your ministers would also be clothed in weakness in order that they may feel compassion for those in ignorance and error: let everyone who approaches them feel sought after, loved, and forgiven by God. Send your Spirit and consecrate every one of us with its anointing, so that the Jubilee of Mercy may be a year of grace from the Lord, and your Church, with renewed enthusiasm, may bring good news to the poor, proclaim liberty to captives and the oppressed, and restore sight to the blind. We ask this through the intercession of Mary, Mother of Mercy, you who live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever.

Amen.

About the Author

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Lita Arroyo

I love all things true, good, and beautiful. I never walk by roses without smelling them and I always stop to watch the sunset. I love the Lord with all my heart, and I find Him in the most ordinary of places. If you can’t find me, I’m probably in a chapel or a coffee shop. Follow me on Instagram @litasnotintotemptation or Twitter @FollowinTheLita

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