When I was a little girl, I always listened to Amy Grant. You know, “Every heart beat belongs to you?!” Well, before she went more mainstream, her albums were much more exclusively Christian and I loved them. In fact, I still enjoy her old music!

There was a song, though, that has stuck with me throughout time. I wrote about it once, I believe, in reference to my Grandma. It’s called “My Father’s Eyes.” Here are the words to the chorus:

She’s got her Father’s eyes, her Father’s eyes
Eyes that find the good in things
When good is not around
Eyes that find the source of help
When help just can’t be found
Eyes full of compassion, seeing every pain
Knowin’ what you’re going through, and feeling it the same
Just like my Father’s eyes
My Father’s eyes
My Father’s eyes
Just like my Father’s eyes

Sitting here this morning, thinking about what to blog, what to blog, what to blog… I thought of what really matters. I know that I’m much more than exercise, but I let that be a mental block for my writing. What am I really about? It’s certainly not just sweating or endorphins or doing fun things — though I’ve been lucky to enjoy so much of that.

Then, I remembered, that THIS is what I always wanted to be about. As a pre-teen, I remember listening to this song and just praying that God would help me have “My Father’s Eyes.” I wanted to see people with love and compassion. I wanted to love people who were different and see the good in the people that were unlikable.

As I’ve grown older, I’ve prayed that instead of being spiteful or bitter at the mean man in the coffee shop or the rude person at work, that God would help me see what made them that way. I always try to remember — that person has a mother, that person has been through something that I can’t see on the surface. That person cries sometimes, has had their heartbroken, has been drowning in despair.

I still sometimes accidentally swear at the bad driver on the highway or have animosity towards someone at work who unfairly gets a bump…but I’m trying to decrease that. If I want to do anything in this life, it’s make people feel loved. And sometimes I’m not that great at it. But here’s what I’m doing…

Yesterday, this man in Starbucks yelled at the barista — to the point that the whole coffee shop shut up and watched him. My initial reaction was to roll my eyes – how could someone be so rude? Then, I remembered I don’t want to look at people that way. I want to have my Father’s eyes. So I prayed for him.

When I left, there was this really annoying man at my doctor’s appointment, the kind of person it would be tough to be friends with, let’s put it that way. I decided to pray for him too. And then, I thought of this person professionally that I kind of dislike and realized, I hate the way that dislike for him makes me feel. And I realized, I’m going to pray for him too.

I want to be the kind of person that someone could scream and yell awful things at, and I wouldn’t respond with anger or hate. I would be able to respond and say, it’s okay because Jesus loves you and he loves me and I know you must be going something through something to say something so horrible.

Lately, I feel like there has been so much animosity and disdain for others. Perhaps it’s because I’m sitting here in the very political world of Washington, DC — in the midst of fights about gay rights and religious freedom and gender wars and conversations about how to fix poverty and violence. We are all so impassioned by our opinions and sometimes, I get so emotionally caught up in it all. I get mad, I get frustrated and angry.

But, that’s not who I want to be, it’s not where I want to be. The only thing I can do is let go and love people. People of every opinion, people who despise me, people who are quite obviously wrong…even people who seem evil, like terrorists. Even them, I’m called to love — even if I want them to stop their destruction and be stopped at all costs!

So, what’s more important than staying in shape, losing weight, reaching a race goal? This is. Seeing people and the world with my Father’s Eyes. I’m going to keep on with my prayer for it and keep on remembering what really matters.