Hindsight is 20/15

So I recently had LASIK. While this has proven to be one of the best things I’ve ever done, prior to having it I was definitely leery of such a procedure. The idea of mixing lasers with eyeballs just didn’t seem like a good combo. Although it’s been over a decade since LASIK received FDA approval, with thousands of people having undergone the procedure, I thought it possible that some unforeseen side effect (likely blindness) could still occur. Thus, in my mind, it was obviously wise to put off such a procedure until at least two decades had gone by. While this seemed like a sound argument, Marisa apparently didn’t agree as her gift for my last birthday entailed her going behind my back and making arrangements for me to have the procedure. (I’m not sure what it says about a spouse when she signs you up for ocular torture and presents it as a gift?) Although I was still a bit anxious about the procedure, my first consultation with the clinic in the Twin Cities put me totally at ease. The procedure, which was incredibly quick, went off without a hitch, and I’m happy to report that just over seven months later I’m still not blind. (I guess Marisa was right after all!) Reflecting on that experience has caused me to think a lot about sight, which is what I want to unpack in this post.

As you may have noticed, there’s a glaring error in the title of this post. The well-known phrase reads, “hindsight is 20/20,” so why did I tweak that? My reason for doing so relates to my experience with LASIK, which has taught me something important about eyesight. While I used to think that perfect vision was 20/20 (in large part due to this popular phrase), I’ve since learned that 20/20 simply refers to normal vision (i.e. what we should expect from our eyes). It means that what you can see clearly at 20 feet is what most people can see clearly at this distance. So normal, not enhanced, vision. This phrase, however, implies enhanced vision; that we’re able to see things with greater clarity once some time has gone by and we’re a bit more removed from the situation. 20/15 vision, on the other hand, implies better-than-normal vision. It means that you can see at 20 feet what most people can only see at 15 feet. (Following LASIK I now have 20/15 vision and can see with greater clarity than before the procedure. Yes, I’m like a superhero!) Given that hindsight affords us a greater perspective of an experience than we had in the moment, it would seem to make more sense to speak of hindsight as being 20/15.

So why is this important for real life? I’ve been reflecting a lot lately on the recent past in hopes of gleaning some wisdom from my experiences. In doing so, I’ve discovered that hindsight really does improve our perspective on things, as we’re able to see events with enhanced clarity. Experiences that at the time seemed so confusing and without purpose, have since come into focus for me as representing incredible opportunities for learning and growth. Although it can be difficult to see this in the moment, especially when you find yourself in the midst of a storm, God uses these experiences to shape us and reveal our character. Reflecting on the past has provided me with incredible insight in the present as to who I am, and I’m grateful for that. One of the definitions of insight is “a deep understanding of a person or a thing.” While my experiences have definitely provided me with a deeper understanding of myself, more significantly than that is the fact that they’ve provided me with a much deeper understanding of God and His faithfulness. A scripture that’s spoken powerfully into my life is Proverbs 3:5-6, which reads, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths.” Although not always easy, I’ve tried to cling to these words in the midst of challenging seasons in life, trusting that God will lead me through them. I would encourage you to do the same as His faithfulness extends to you as well.

Thinking a bit more about the insight I’ve gained as of late, I’ve heard it said that we focus the majority of our thoughts either on the past (where we’ve been) or on the future (where we hope to be going), and in the process it’s the present that gets neglected. Obviously that’s a problem as it means that we’re never truly living in the moment. When we think about the past, it can be viewed with either fondness/nostalgia or with shame/regret. In the same way, the future can be viewed with either hope/expectation or with fear/uncertainty. The way in which we view our present reality is typically shaped either by our experiences in the past or by our outlook for the future, if not a combination of the two. While this is unavoidable to some extent, I believe it’s crucial that we do our best to embrace today, rather than staying stuck in the past or fixating on the future, or we’ll always miss the gifts that the present has for us. (I unpacked this thought more in my first post so I’ll simply leave it at that here.) So that’s the past and the present, but what about the future?

Just as my LASIK procedure has caused me to reflect on hindsight and insight, it’s likewise caused me to think about foresight. When we think about foresight we likely associate it with the ability to predict the future. How well has that been working for you? In my experience the future has tended to turn out quite differently than I could have envisioned, so that definition of foresight seems quite unrealistic. However, foresight can also simply mean looking forward, as well as exercising care for the future (such as investing wisely). While reality reveals that we cannot predict the future, we nevertheless can expect that it will come and do our best to prepare for it in the present.

Another word for foresight that’s used in organizations is “vision,” which seems a fitting word on which to focus as I wrap up this post. A definition I came across for an organization’s vision is “its optimal desired future state,” which although not entirely predictable can nevertheless provide a clear direction. I’ve come to believe that vision is key as we look to the future because it helps to clarify where we’re going. If we’re working as part of a team, a vision helps to ensure that everyone keeps tracking in the same direction. I’ve learned in recent years that without a clear (and compelling) vision it won’t take long before people either begin to drift or for competing directions to be lifted up. This will undoubtedly lead to confusion at best (where nobody has any clear idea of where they’re headed) or division at worst (where people get frustrated and walk away). Thus a clear vision is key for any organization, and if the organization of which you’re a part is the Church (as it is for me), then your vision had better be from God; which means your visioning process has to have prayer at its core. Although we may not think of it much, it’s not a bad idea for us as individuals to likewise have visions for ourselves and our families. Now we may not formalize those into actual statements that we post in our houses (although I know that some families do this, which I think is a cool practice), yet they nevertheless can provide direction and guidance for our lives. Whether operating as individuals or as part of an organization, I believe the words of one of my favorite scriptures can provide us with an incredible vision for the future: “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11). Although the future remains unpredictable for us, we can trust that it’s not unpredictable for God, and that He has a plan for our lives.

Maybe today you’re stuck rehashing the past, whether that be in the form of guilt, shame or regret. Maybe you currently find yourself in a storm and you can’t see a way out. Maybe your outlook for the future is grim, or you’re allowing fear to keep you from doing something that you deep down know will improve your life. Wherever you find yourself, my encouragement is that you ask God to help you begin to see through the eyes of faith.  Hebrews 11:1 speaks of faith as “the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” While asking God to do this work in you may be scary, it’s time to stop dragging your feet and coming up with irrational fears, and instead allow Him to reshape your life. Rather than continuing to see ourselves through our imperfect eyes as normal, ordinary, or even insignificant, let’s ask God to help us see ourselves as He sees us, as his beloved sons and daughters.