Peripheral Vision

Peripheral Vision

Publication: The Lookout

Date: June 13, 1999

Column: From the Editor's Desk

Category: Parenting

Recently I gave my teenage daughter her first driving lesson. To put it mildly, she has a lot to learn. For our classroom, we chose an empty parking lot next to a large building that used to house a hardware store. I turned off the ignition, handed Mindy the keys, and moved gingerly into my designated position in the passenger's seat.

Smiling eagerly, Mindy slid behind the wheel while I began calling out one reminder after another: "Keep both hands on the steering wheel. Don't push the accelerator or the brake too hard. Adjust your mirrors. Be sure to use your turn signal."

In spite of my instructions, Mindy looked confused. "Dad," she finally asked, "how do I put the car in gear?"

I had given her lots of advice, but somehow I hadn't communicated how to make the car move! With the lessons of Gear-Shifting 101 now firmly imbedded in her mind, Mindy began to explore other mysteries of the driver's craft—like the rearview mirror mounted on the driver's side door.

"Use your peripheral vision to look at the mirror," I told her. "While you keep your eyes on the road ahead, you can still see what's happening off to the side."

What an amazing ability—to see things "out of the corner of your eye" even while you're focused on something else! Drivers aren't the only ones who need peripheral vision. A quarterback needs it to avoid tacklers. A teacher needs to have "eyes in the back of her head" to manage a classroom full of students.

In a different way, parents need peripheral vision to notice what's happening in the lives of our children. It's possible to focus so intensely on feeding and clothing them that we don't hear their muffled cries for spiritual guidance. Our kids' interactions with teachers and friends may seem like peripheral issues—but not to our children. Unless we notice the little things and cultivate healthy communication at home, we may not understand how others are influencing our youngsters' values—and we'll be blindsided by unforeseen problems.

Church leaders need peripheral vision, too. Perhaps you have heard the oft-quoted wisdom, "The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing." I'd like to suggest a corollary: "Make sure what you consider the main thing really is the right thing." The church's "main thing" must always be to glorify God. Among other things, we honor God by worshipping him, by upholding his truth, by making disciples. Compared to the Great Commission, everything else seems peripheral. Yet as the team marches down the field, wise leaders keep an eye on the sidelines and ask, "What spiritual needs are we overlooking? What important doctrines do we need to stress? Are there gaps in our thinking? Have we developed any blind spots?"

Jesus was focused and purposeful, but he possessed strong "peripheral vision" as well. Sometimes what others considered side issues were quite important to him—things like playing and praying with little children, ministering to the chronically ill, and washing others' feet. Some of his most powerful teachings were encased in parables that only those with keen peripheral vision could understand.

Meanwhile, Mindy continues her driving lessons. "Dad," she asked the other evening, "when I make a sharp turn, how can I keep my arms from getting tangled on the steering wheel?"

She still has a lot to learn. My guess is, so do you and I.