Look to the LORD, and be radiant.

 

Friday, July 14, 2023


Psalm 34

1 Samuel 29:1-30:6

John 4:16-26


Look to the LORD, and be radiant.


There was an article awhile ago on cultivating healthy mental habits, where the primary focus was on starting the day on the right foot. It asked the question: what is the first thing you look at when you wake up? For many, their phone is at hand, and the first thing they see is whatever their phone decides is most important. I was raised in the type of home where one was unable to sit down for breakfast without a book; it was only a few years ago I finally met someone else who also was unable to start their day with a bit of reading.


All this to say that what we look at has consequences. We can’t unsee things, and our eyes are tender organs. Jesus Himself teaches us to be careful with what we look at, because as the window to the soul, any old thing can pour in directly through the eyes and into our very being (Matt 6:22-24). It all goes into us and sloshes around like in a concrete mixer, and whatever pours out at the end is how we see ourselves and the world around us.


Often we cannot help what we see. But how we see things can be helped. Here is an easy one: looking at a view of the bush. Every single human being sees something inherently beautiful in the natural landscape. But to the Christian, nature is enhanced with the knowledge that it was made by God for us to enjoy; appreciation is infused with divine love and becomes worship.


This is what every day life is for the Christian. Every step we take is guided; every moment is spent with the One we love most, and who loves us back as if we were the only human ever created. Look to the Lord, and be radiant.



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