Seeing with Heaven’s Eyes
Seeing people not through worldly labels, but through the eternal value God has placed on them.
A Dangerous Prayer in the Best Sense
“Our Lord, may I see others with Your eyes, hear them with Your ears, and speak to them Your words of life. May I see them not in terms of the condition they appear to be in, but in the value You have placed on them and the purposes of love You long to fulfill through them.” — Mark
That’s a prayer that reorients everything. It asks for nothing less than the mind of Christ.
Loved Before Changed
“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son…” (John 3:16). Notice the order: loved first, before change, before confession, before belief. Christ gave His life to redeem all, and He invites all to Himself.
This means every person you encounter—whether they confess Him yet or not—is deeply loved. Believers are being conformed into the image of His Son (Romans 8:29). Yet the same God values every human life, because all are created in His image (Genesis 1:27).
We are tempted to measure people by their performance, beliefs, or lifestyle.
But God sees them through eternal worth and redeeming love.
Eternal vs. Temporary Vision
Left to ourselves, we see others through temporary, earthly lenses: politics, reputation, failures, or labels. But Colossians 3 calls us higher:
“Since then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is… Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” (Colossians 3:1–2).
Eternal vision refuses to stop at the surface. It sees the value God has already declared and the possibility of His purpose still unfolding.
Clothing Ourselves for Clearer Vision
Paul gives us the wardrobe that changes how we see others:
“Clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience… Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” (Colossians 3:12–14).
Love is the lens. Without it, our sight stays clouded by judgment or frustration. With it, we see people not as categories or conditions, but as beloved image-bearers—each one a life Christ died to redeem.
Transformation Is His Work
We can’t generate this kind of vision by ourselves.
Only God can renew our minds and teach us to see others rightly. The Holy Spirit reshapes our view, revealing to us both the depth of God’s love for all people and His transformative work in those who are His.
We may not always see the finished story, but He does.
And His love never wavers—toward the believer being conformed into Christ’s image, or the skeptic He still longs to draw home.
Reflection
Where am I tempted to see people only through earthly labels instead of eternal love?
How would my posture change if I viewed every person as stamped with God’s image and invited into His love?
What would it look like to put on compassion and love as my lens today?
Prayer
Father, give me Your eyes to see each person not only in their present condition, but in the eternal value You have placed on them. Strip away the lenses of judgment, fear, or impatience. Clothe me in compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Above all, let love be my lens. Help me to see both the transforming work You are doing in Your children and the unshakable worth You have given every soul. Teach me to view people as You do: infinitely loved and eternally valued. Amen.