“What were your magic moments?”
This is one of the questions we ask each other in Peer Success Circles, a wonderful service run by my lovely friend Joseph Varghese. Knowing that I’m going to be asked this question each day has helped me start paying attention to the little joys in life, if for no other reason than I’ll have one or two answers ready for the question.
But what if magic moments were meant to be the rule rather than the exception? What if we could learn to open ourselves so fully to life that each day became a joyous, unbroken string of magic moments? Is this something that would have to depend on our external circumstances? Or could we bring it with us wherever we go and whatever we do?
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says, “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light.” This suggests that how we see things is very important to how we experience life and how others experience us. We are so tempted to think that all we have to do is fix our external circumstances and then we’ll be good, then we’ll be whole, then we’ll be safe. But what if it’s just that our eyes need healing? What if the key is to see that we already are good, safe, and whole? Recipients of grace and unconditional love, engaged always and already in a cosmic Dance, creating and being created in the image of God!
Sounds great! So why aren’t we all happy? “But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!” We can certainly be out of alignment with the truth. When in darkness, we’re overwhelmed by fear. We don’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. We’ve lost touch with the power of Grace and Love. We feel less-than, not-enough, broken, distanced from God, ourselves, and each other. It doesn’t matter who’s around. Depression at whatever grade is a lonely, lonely place to be.
We need healing. We need healing our whole lives, in every dimension of our being. Jesus knew this. For him, healing wasn’t a side show, a stunt to garner him some credibility. He already spoke with authority. Whether through his words or his actions, healing was central to his ministry.
Ask for healing. Look for healing. Trust that healing is not only possible but that it’s your destiny. You will find that, as you heal, you will also help the people around you heal. Sickness doesn’t have a monopoly on contagion. Your healthy eyes will connect with the tired, broken eyes of others, bringing an implicit message of hope. “I know what you’re going through” and “We are in this together.”
Remember this: healing isn’t a one-shot deal. It’s a life-long affair. It’s not that first you get healed, and then you start experiencing magic. No, it’s all weaved together and it never ends. True happiness embraces both the Pain and Beauty of life, recognizing ultimately that they’re part of a single unbroken whole. The good news then is that you can be far from healthy yet have a wealth of answers to that question: “What were your magic moments?”