Anna Mae Pennica was born with cataracts that left her blind. But in October 1981, Dr. Thomas Pettit of the Jules Stein Eye Institute in Los Angeles removed the cataract from Anna Mae's left eye--and for the first time she could see! She even passed a driver's test.

But there is a sad postscript to this surgical triumph. The technique for correcting Mrs. Pennica's eye condition had been in use since the 1940s. She could have been enjoying 40 years of sight but instead had remained blind needlessly.

What a greater tragedy to stumble through this world with sightless souls and be lost in impenetrable night forever! That was the condition of the Pharisees when Jesus healed the man born blind (Jn. 9). They were so blinded by their slavish devotion to outward religious appearances and traditions that they could not recognize the Light of the world. Their stubborn refusal to see their own sins kept them in spiritual darkness, and they rejected the Lord's offer of forgiveness.

Jesus said, "I am the light of the world. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life" (Jn. 8:12). Have you let the Light of the world into your life, or are you needlessly living in darkness?  — Vernon C. Grounds