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“Feliz Navidad!
Feliz Navidad!Feliz NavidadProspero año y Felicidad!
I wanna wish you a Merry Christmassssss!”
Clapping off beat and belting Christmas songs at the top of my lungs in a Vietnamese orphanage, spicy squid, fresh guava, and Christmas cookies line the table, my eyes meet his.
A few people down from me a little boy, no older than 6, eating his weight in sprinkles, smiled at me. In that moment I knew I was a goner. He stole my heart away with just one smile, and for the rest of our time at the orphanage, we were attached at the hip. We played tag, tickled each other, laughed till it hurt, and ate more sprinkles. He climbed on my shoulders, and we danced.
What struck me about this little boy wasn’t his adorable laugh, or his silly way of eating sprinkles and consequently spilling them everywhere, or the way he sang the wrong words to Christmas songs, no. There was something so special, so alive in his eyes. He had a fire deep within him, a joy that radiated from every pore. His eyes were soft, but strong; young and spirited, but calming and pure.
Staring out the window with him next to me, I started to wonder about what people saw when they looked in the eyes of another little boy long ago, what they felt deep within them when they were face to face with innocence so fierce.
Fully man and fully God.
What was it like to look Jesus in the eyes?
He was human like the rest of us, but I’d be willing to bet the steadiness of his eyes gave people a glimpse into who he really was.
Can you imagine what it would feel like to look into the eyes of a man who saw you fully, who saw all of you? A man who embodied mercy, justice, peace, strength, innocence, looking you straight in the eyes. Just the thought overwhelms me.
As this Christmas season and my time here in Vietnam comes to a close, I am captivated by who Jesus is and the way he shows up around the globe. Oh how my heart now longs to experience his gentle and fierce gaze face to face.
Merry Christmas to all, and to all the eyes of Christ.
