Getting Eye-to-Eye with God

By Leslie Bertucci

I was recently helping my grandson Ollie get ready for bed. He was struggling to undo the buttons on his shirt, so I sat on the couch and had him stand in front of me.

“Grandma needs to be eye-to-eye with you,” I said. His face immediately lit up with a huge grin.

“Eye-to-eye?” he repeated, laughing.

“Yes,” I said, demonstrating by putting my face right up next to his. He broke out into giggles, apparently finding great humor in this new phrase.

I decided to capitalize on the moment by showing him nose-to-nose, cheek-to-cheek and ear-to-ear as well. In the end, Ollie collapsed on the floor in a fit of laughter.

It took twice as long to get his shirt unbuttoned, but it was worth it. “Eye-to-eye” is now one of his favorite expressions.

I was still smiling about this incident as I made the hour-long drive home that night. Then, this thought struck me: Doesn’t God want to be eye-to-eye with us?

If sinning means turning our faces away from the Lord, then being in relationship with him must mean turning our faces toward him. He is the “bridegroom” who gazes with love at us, his beloved. It is only natural to want to gaze back.

A few years ago, I learned that the origin of the word “reconciliation” are Greek words which literally mean “come eyelash-to-eyelash” with the other. This is how close God wants to be with us.

I can only imagine the delight it brings to him, as it brought to my grandson, when our faces come so close together that we see ourselves reflected in his eyes.