Unfortunately, seeing ourselves and the world through a lens where we are the focal point is incredibly human and normal. We ask: "How does this affect me?", "How does this help or harm me?", "How do I care for myself or the people and things I love?". The wrestling match between who we are in our flesh and who we are as children of God is relentless. In mercy, God offers a new lens prescription, He knows we need to be given perspective so we don't drift back into serving ourselves. There is a phrase in the Bible that comes up when God wants us to know that we need to see things differently than we are: "Lift up your eyes." The implication in every instance is that we would change our perspective from what we see to what God wants us to see.
In John 4:35, Jesus says to his disciples, "Do you not say, 'There are yet four months, then comes the harvest'? Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes and see that the fields are white for harvest." My hope for us this Summer is that we will take our eye off of our own small world and pray that God will allow us to see the real world around us more clearly, the way He sees it. And when we see with those corrective lenses may we respond in obedience to God and His mission. How do we actually do this though? Let me offer a few ways:
Lift up your eyes to see who is right in front of you.
We are pridefully busy and distracted people. We are in preservation mode, just trying to make it to the next time our heads can hit our pillow or to the weekend. When we live this way, our world becomes small, and our focus turns inward. Experts believe the average person has a circle of influence of around 90 people. The first time I heard that number, I wondered how that could be true. But as I started to think through family, friends, co-workers, and people I knew from church, that list multiplied. God wants us to influence others for Christ, lift up your eyes and see the people He has placed in your path.
Lift up your eyes and see what's really going on.
As we start noticing the people around us, we have to work hard, squinting to see what's really happening under the surface. If your busy life clouds your perspective, others are in the same boat. We must seek to know the people in our circles to see how the Gospel can change their lives. When you see what’s actually going on under the surface, pray that God would give you the discernment to serve, show, and share Jesus well with those around you.
Lift up your eyes and see where God will lead you.
It's almost as if we can only clearly see what God would have for us personally when we stop focusing on ourselves. When we focus on ourselves, we can only see what we want or desire, and we can only be in service to ourselves as a result. But, when we lift up our eyes and focus on what God desires, we can truly be on a mission in the place He put us to the people He put us with. This is the heart behind when we say we are "called" to something. When we surrender to the rule and reign of Christ, we live out our calling.
Lift up your eyes!