Where are you looking?

“Look to the Lord and His strength; seek His face always.” Psalm 105:4

Recently, I was scrolling on Instagram and realized I was quickly venturing down the road of defeat. I found myself looking at exercise videos and realizing I apparently don’t exercise enough, eat right, or look like those “influencers.” It was a never-ending struggle of self-analysis. So, I put down my phone and looked up this verse I had memorized years ago- Psalm 105:4. This verse tells us to “Look to the Lord and His strength; seek His face always.” As I read that verse, I was reminded that where my eyes often look, my heart tends to follow. There is certainly nothing wrong with exercise, eating right, or taking care of oneself, but when that (or any other thing that hinders your walk with the Lord) becomes your main focus and what defines you, it will also be what defeats you.

God’s Word has so much to say about where and what we should be looking at, and how it affects the journey with the Lord that we are on.

If we are constantly looking to other people or other things and taking our eyes off the purpose to which we are called, these things will hinder our walk with the Lord.

Hebrews 12:1-2 says, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders us and the sin that so easily entangles us, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. FIXING OUR EYES ON JESUS, the author and perfector of our faith….”

The Greek word for hinder is “ogkos” and means encumbrance, weight, or burden. Things that hinder us aren’t necessarily sin- they’re things that keep us from running our race; things that slow us down. It’s easier to look at our tough circumstances rather than keep our eyes on Jesus. It’s easier to look at people who hurt us rather than at the Lord and His strength. But, as we open up God’s Word and begin to see where He tells us to look, we tend to have a better view of those hard circumstances and how our heavenly Father wants to teach us to depend on Him in the midst of the hard.

Psalm 16:8 says, “I keep my eyes on the Lord. With Him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.

Psalm 119:37 says, “Turn my eyes away from worthless things; preserve my life according to Your word.”

Psalm 34:4-5 says, “I sought the Lord and He answered me; He delivered me from all of my fears. Those who LOOK TO HIM are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame.

So, this week, let’s all try to “Look to the Lord and His strength and seek His face always.” The verses above are great verses to pray as you find your eyes wandering away from the purpose to which you are called!

Have a great week and “Fix your eyes on Jesus.”