Turn your eyes upon Jesus

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.

We have all sung these words in worship many times before. It is a wonderfully simple, yet powerful, reminder to look up and away from our own troubles in the knowledge that God is sovereign.

I remember these words being on my mind the day of my baptism, when asked what had changed in my life since giving my life to Jesus. On the surface it can seem a little bleak - “strangely dim” can suggest some sort of depression or dissatisfaction with things around us. But that is not the purpose of these words. It is more about a sense of perspective, or scale, to remind us that our lives are part of God’s eternal plan and that we can be lifted from the daily troubles we encounter.

The biblical passage that inspired these words comes from Psalm 123:1 - “I lift up my eyes to you, to you who sit enthroned in heaven.” The Psalm is about expectantly waiting and watching for God to move, in the face of challenges and suffering in day-to-day life. As we know, God’s word can speak to all of us in a different way, at different times.

For me, these words came to mind over the Christmas period. For many, Christmas is a time when the world goes crazy for consumerism. It starts with Black Friday in late November and doesn’t relent, even when Christmas has passed and we have seen the onslaught of advertising and marketing, selling us happiness in a perfume bottle or the latest gadget. We are then told from Boxing Day onwards that true happiness can be found by buying a holiday or joining a gym.

Having spent some years working in the advertising industry, I have always been alert to these tactics. But this Christmas was different: for the first time I really saw that the pursuit of ‘things’ is a folly. Yes, I received some lovely gifts and so did my children, but for many the reality of the situation kicks in after the dopamine hit of buying something has passed, and you’re left with the credit card bills.

“Strangely dim” sums it up perfectly. It was a reminder to lift my eyes to God, to spend more time in His presence and feed on His word, and be glad of the non-material things in life, and to see the things of the world for what they really are. “I lift up my eyes to you, to you who sit enthroned in heaven.”

Prayer - Lord, thank you for your Word and for being our teacher. Help us to remember to lift up our eyes, to you who sit enthroned in heaven.

Photo by Gift Habeshaw on Unsplash