I’ve worn glasses since I was in the 5th grade. I knew things were going bad at my vision test when the nurse kept asking me to read the letters and then gave me a note to take home to my mom. I’ve mostly worn contact lenses since I was 14 but I still where my glasses in the morning and before going to bed. I might switch back to full-time glasses, though, if I had a pair of these.
Those Star Wars-inspired frames can be found at Gizmine.com for the unreasonable price of $500 each. For $500 the Darth Vader glasses better give me Force powers and the Boba Fett glasses better come with a rocket pack. There is no way I can justify spending $500 on a pair of glasses but there is still a part of me that would like to try.
Satisfying my inner fanboy by spending $0.99 on Star Wars: Angry Birds is justifiable. I don’t think Alycia or even Jesus could be too upset about that. However, spending $500 on a pair of glasses seems a bit obscene when those in extreme poverty live on less than that per year. Not only is it obscene but I also think it would upset Jesus and I know it would upset Alycia.
Still, though, there’s that part of me that thinks, “Well if I could just save some money here and there, then I might be able to sport those glasses by spring.”
And it’s that part of me that still fascinates me; it’s that part of me of which I’m still ashamed. Even though I know that I don’t need $500 glasses and that money could easily go to infinitely worthier causes, there’s still that part of me that wants them. There’s still that part of me that wants to figure out how to get them. There’s still that part of me that hopes the makers will see this blog post and send me a pair. It’s that little part of me which shows me how selfish I can still be and that I need Jesus just as much today as I did five or 10 years ago.
I know it’s just a pair of glasses and I shouldn’t beat myself up too much for wanting something. I was about to write “I shouldn’t beat myself up too much for wanting something that I’ll never buy.” But the truth of the matter is, if I had $500 to spend on glasses, I would buy them in a heartbeat. It’s that reality which makes me focus more on 2 Corinthians 4:18.
So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
Whether we need glasses or not, we’re called to fix our eyes on the unseen things of Christ. Everything we can see: homes, cars, video games, movies and glasses, are temporary; they’ll fade away. It’s in Christ that we can find our true fulfillment and satisfaction.
$500 X-Wing glass would give me satisfaction for months, maybe even a few years. In the end, though, they would break or I’d feel silly preaching while wearing Star Wars glasses.
The eternal things of Christ, though, never fade. Our investment in others and furthering of God’s kingdom will last throughout eternity. Those are the things we should focus on, even if we’re looking at them through $100 glasses.
How do you focus more on Christ’s eternal things as opposed to those temporary things and temptations?
Great post, Scott. I struggle with that greedy fanboy part of myself, too (though these glasses don't particularly tempt me!). I'd like to say I've mastered it, but not yet, and probably never completely, this side of paradise. Sometimes what helps, though, when I can't foucus on the eternal things is to focus on some of those "inifintely more worthy" temporal things like food for the hungry, or even, closer to my home, my own financial responsibilities as a parent. But it is an ongoing struggle. Thanks for this great post.
If you like star wars you should really watch the clone wars. They brought Darth maul back last season.