And I thought Paul Baloche had flunked anatomy. That in his “artistic license” he was loosely connecting body parts that aren’t really connected. But he was quoting Scripture! Who knew?

Open the eyes of my heart, Lord
Open the eyes of my heart
I want to see You
I want to see You
~ Paul Baloche, “Open the Eyes of My Heart”, © 1997, Integrity’s Hosanna! Music ~

I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers,
that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory,
may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him,
having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know . . .

~ Paul the Apostle, Ephesians 1:16-18a ESV, © The Holy Spirit ~

The eyes of your hearts . . . That’s what I’m chewing on this morning.

Some translations render it “the eyes of your understanding”, but for most it’s the eyes of your hearts.

What a curious phrase when you stop to noodle on it for a bit.

The eyes. Made for seeing. An “input device”, if you will. Required for sight. And, apparently, also needed for insight.

Our hearts. The seat of not only our emotions, feelings, and desires, but also of our understanding, thoughts, and imagination. The portal to our souls. Shaping who we are.

And so, Paul the Apostle sings Paul Baloche (not really), “Open the eyes of their hearts, Lord! They need to see You.”

That’s why we have been given the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation — so that we who were once darkness (Eph. 5:8a) and without God in the world (Eph. 2:12) could now walk as children of light (Eph. 5:8b) possessing the knowledge of Him.

Seeing is believing, sure. But believing is also seeing. Seeing with the soul.

But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love Him” — these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God.

(1Corinthians 2:9-10 ESV)

What an amazing dynamic! Through the Spirit, God reveals to us stuff we could never have come up with on our own. Stuff beyond our five senses, stuff beyond our wildest speculations. Talk about having an encounter of the divine kind! And Paul prays (the apostle, not Baloche) that it would be the normative experience of the believer — to have the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know.

. . . that you may know what is the hope to which He has called you, what are the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of His power toward us who believe.

(Ephesians 1:18b-19a ESV)

That you may know . . . the hope . . . the riches . . . the power . . .

Yes, Lord! Open the eyes of my heart!

By Your grace. For Your glory.