Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus
Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus
“Come with Me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” Mark 6:31
You tend to be an overthinker, change may feel extra overwhelming to you. Overthinkers have an incredible ability to add many complicated layers to a situation by the stories we tell ourselves about it, the fears that spring out of nowhere, and the whole host of anxious thoughts that run rampant on the hamster wheels of our minds.
Jesus was clearly aware of our common human condition when he walked among us, often addressing the worries of the people and redirecting their thoughts from fear to faith. And the beautiful and brilliant thing is anyone, anywhere, can do what he's inviting us to do: to turn our eyes toward Him.
We live in a time of information overload. We're constantly bombarded with solutions to problems we didn't even know we had. But the truth is while information can be helpful, it will never do what a quiet moment in God's presence can do.
When we are experiencing something new and unfamiliar, it can be easy to panic and grasp for whatever will bring a sense of safety and assurance. And while the world has plenty of solutions, the father has one: Jesus. Our Light, our Shepherd, our Prince of peace awaits our company every moment of the day. We can take a breath and shift our focus away from our overrun minds and toward a simple thought of Him. We can become aware of His presence and be reminded of His promised provision and unconditional love. To sum it up, we can just simply be.
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My eyes are continually toward the Lord, For He will rescue my feet from the net.
Psalm 25:15
I will raise my eyes to the mountains; From where will my help come?
Psalm 121:1
For my eyes are toward You, God, the Lord; In You I take refuge; do not leave me defenseless.
Psalm 141:8
To You I have raised my eyes, You who are enthroned in the heavens!
Psalm 123:1
Imagine for a moment what David’s life was like. The preceding four passages from Psalms are all written by David. From a very young age he learned that he needed to trust in God in the midst of all the challenges he faced. Think for a moment about his life. As a young shepherd boy, he had to be along in the wilderness and face lions and bears with nothing but a sling. When he gets a little older, he is anointed to be the future king, but he must serve the current king, Saul. Then there is Goliath! All the men of the army of Israel trembled in fear before the giant. David walks onto the battlefield with the same sling and rock he used to face the lion and the bear. Following this, David faced the wrath of king Saul and lived as a fugitive for years. David faced his own shame and sinfulness and the guilt of being a murder. He grieved the loss of a child. There was rebellion in his house, and he once more had to grieve the loss of another child. This and many more trials fill the life of David. He was not a perfect man but God we faithful and David discovered no matter what he endured, God was there for him.
I would be willing to guess that none of us faced anywhere near the challenges which filled the life of David. But comparisons don’t really work, do they? What we face in our lives today are the issues which fill our hearts with fear and move us to despair. What might seem like a minor issue to someone may seem like a mountain to us.
Our theme verse for today is “Come with Me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” We read it quickly and it brings an assuring word or image from Jesus, but we need to understand the context. The 12 have just returned from being sent out by Jesus. As soon as they return, they are told of the beheading of John the Baptizer by Herod the Great. The entire group are men who are overwhelmed with grief and the reality that the same fate could await them as they continue to minister in the name of Jesus.
When Jesus tells them to come away to a quiet place, it was so they could focus on who He is and what He is able to provide in their lives. Time alone with Jesus is what was able to heal their hurting hearts and enable them to refocus their lives.
What was true for the apostles is the same reality for each one of us. It is when our focus is one Jesus and our hearts are assured of His promises that we can live with confidence, even when the rest of our life seem to be going down the tubes.
The old song, “Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus” was a song which reminded us of this truth.
O soul, are you weary and troubled?
No light in the darkness you see?
There's light for a look at the Savior
And life more abundant and free
Turn your eyes upon Jesus
Look full in His wonderful face
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
In the light of His glory and grace
Amen and Amen!
In Christ,
Pastor Russ
“Come with Me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” Mark 6:31
You tend to be an overthinker, change may feel extra overwhelming to you. Overthinkers have an incredible ability to add many complicated layers to a situation by the stories we tell ourselves about it, the fears that spring out of nowhere, and the whole host of anxious thoughts that run rampant on the hamster wheels of our minds.
Jesus was clearly aware of our common human condition when he walked among us, often addressing the worries of the people and redirecting their thoughts from fear to faith. And the beautiful and brilliant thing is anyone, anywhere, can do what he's inviting us to do: to turn our eyes toward Him.
We live in a time of information overload. We're constantly bombarded with solutions to problems we didn't even know we had. But the truth is while information can be helpful, it will never do what a quiet moment in God's presence can do.
When we are experiencing something new and unfamiliar, it can be easy to panic and grasp for whatever will bring a sense of safety and assurance. And while the world has plenty of solutions, the father has one: Jesus. Our Light, our Shepherd, our Prince of peace awaits our company every moment of the day. We can take a breath and shift our focus away from our overrun minds and toward a simple thought of Him. We can become aware of His presence and be reminded of His promised provision and unconditional love. To sum it up, we can just simply be.
+++
My eyes are continually toward the Lord, For He will rescue my feet from the net.
Psalm 25:15
I will raise my eyes to the mountains; From where will my help come?
Psalm 121:1
For my eyes are toward You, God, the Lord; In You I take refuge; do not leave me defenseless.
Psalm 141:8
To You I have raised my eyes, You who are enthroned in the heavens!
Psalm 123:1
Imagine for a moment what David’s life was like. The preceding four passages from Psalms are all written by David. From a very young age he learned that he needed to trust in God in the midst of all the challenges he faced. Think for a moment about his life. As a young shepherd boy, he had to be along in the wilderness and face lions and bears with nothing but a sling. When he gets a little older, he is anointed to be the future king, but he must serve the current king, Saul. Then there is Goliath! All the men of the army of Israel trembled in fear before the giant. David walks onto the battlefield with the same sling and rock he used to face the lion and the bear. Following this, David faced the wrath of king Saul and lived as a fugitive for years. David faced his own shame and sinfulness and the guilt of being a murder. He grieved the loss of a child. There was rebellion in his house, and he once more had to grieve the loss of another child. This and many more trials fill the life of David. He was not a perfect man but God we faithful and David discovered no matter what he endured, God was there for him.
I would be willing to guess that none of us faced anywhere near the challenges which filled the life of David. But comparisons don’t really work, do they? What we face in our lives today are the issues which fill our hearts with fear and move us to despair. What might seem like a minor issue to someone may seem like a mountain to us.
Our theme verse for today is “Come with Me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” We read it quickly and it brings an assuring word or image from Jesus, but we need to understand the context. The 12 have just returned from being sent out by Jesus. As soon as they return, they are told of the beheading of John the Baptizer by Herod the Great. The entire group are men who are overwhelmed with grief and the reality that the same fate could await them as they continue to minister in the name of Jesus.
When Jesus tells them to come away to a quiet place, it was so they could focus on who He is and what He is able to provide in their lives. Time alone with Jesus is what was able to heal their hurting hearts and enable them to refocus their lives.
What was true for the apostles is the same reality for each one of us. It is when our focus is one Jesus and our hearts are assured of His promises that we can live with confidence, even when the rest of our life seem to be going down the tubes.
The old song, “Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus” was a song which reminded us of this truth.
O soul, are you weary and troubled?
No light in the darkness you see?
There's light for a look at the Savior
And life more abundant and free
Turn your eyes upon Jesus
Look full in His wonderful face
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
In the light of His glory and grace
Amen and Amen!
In Christ,
Pastor Russ
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