Scripture speaks of Moses reaching the end of his time here on earth without the disability of poor eyesight.

Deuteronomy 34:7 Moses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died, yet his eyes were not weak nor his strength gone.

I am not like that. I’m more like the descriptions of Isaac and Eli.

Genesis 27:1 When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see…

1 Samuel 3:2 One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see…

Well, I’m not quite that bad, but seven years ago in January I had a torn retina in my left eye and a torn and detached retina in my right eye. It was not the result of an injury, but something hereditary. My father had something very similar happen to him.

My left eye was repaired with non-invasive laser surgery, and has been doing very well. The right eye, however, required more aggressive surgery to repair it. They put a buckle around it, removed the fluid from inside my eye and tried to weld the detached retina back into place with lasers. They then filled the eye with an oil to try to hold everything in place. Another surgery removed the oil, and I was hopeful that would be the end of that. At my next checkup, they discovered a wrinkle in the retina, so I went through everything again. I was closely monitored for many more months, during which time they removed the cataract from my right eye, which was caused by all the surgeries. In November they determined that the retina was still not attached properly, so I went through the entire procedure a third time. They were very aggressive with the laser and finally successful in attaching the retina. Unfortunately, the consequence of all those surgeries is very blurry vision in my right eye, so much so that I cannot see anything other than the big E on the eye chart with that eye. Thankfully, my left eye has enabled me to live a “normal” life.

However, for the last three or four years a cataract has been forming in my left eye. My ophthalmologist is a friend of mine, and has been monitoring it closely. He is known as a top-notch cataract surgeon, but has been putting this off as long as possible. Why? He told me the main risk in cataract surgery is a detached retina. Because I only have one good eye, he didn’t want to do it until it was necessary.

The time has come. My night vision is nothing but starbursts when there are lights. The retina doctor has cleared me for the surgery, which is taking place today.

I’m sharing this with you so that you might offer a prayer for me and those who will be working on me. I have complete confidence in my surgeon. He has already performed cataract surgery on both of Cheryl’s eyes. I will be praying with him today before the surgery. I do so with the assurance that God is the one in control of all this.

A passage I often shared with others as they faced surgery is the one below.

Psalm 31:9–15a Be merciful to me, O Lord, for I am in distress; my eyes grow weak with sorrow, my soul and my body with grief. My life is consumed by anguish and my years by groaning; my strength fails because of my affliction, and my bones grow weak. Because of all my enemies, I am the utter contempt of my neighbors; I am a dread to my friends— those who see me on the street flee from me. I am forgotten by them as though I were dead; I have become like broken pottery. For I hear the slander of many; there is terror on every side; they conspire against me and plot to take my life. But I trust in you, O Lord; I say, “You are my God.” My times are in your hands.

My times are in the hands of the one who lived and suffered and died and rose again for me. He has provided for my greatest need: forgiveness. He has blessed me beyond anything I deserve. I trust Him in all things. I know that I could not be in any better hands.

It may be a few days before I write another devotion.