Look Up for Victory
I lift up my eyes to the mountains—where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot slip—He who watches over you will not slumber;
indeed, He who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.
Psalm 121:1-4 (NIV)
In ancient days, it was a huge military advantage to be positioned on a hill. Whoever had the high ground would likely be the victor. Notice what this verse says: I lift my eyes to the mountains, meaning God is my fortress, strength and high ground. God would often do things that didn’t make sense, like telling Gideon to reduce the number of men he would take into battle. Why? Because God is our help. We don’t help God because He needs no help. The way we honor Him is to depend on Him. Our weakness magnifies God’s strength, and He is delighted to help His children. Think about this: we have a God who never sleeps or slumbers, and He longs to do good for us. Isn’t that amazing?
Israel is a relatively small nation with countless enemies, yet it’s continued to be a people, even when they were displaced from their land. Why? Because God watches out for them. It doesn’t matter what you’re facing. God has promised He will be your help and victory. He specializes in resurrections and miracles. Never forget this. If life doesn’t go according to plan, He promises to walk with you.
The key to hope is to look up. If you look around at the wind and the waves, you will sink like Peter did. You must get your eyes locked on God. When you’re driving in the rain, the wipers remove the obstacles keeping you from seeing clearly. Likewise, when we set our eyes on God and look up, all the obstacles get pushed out of the way, and we can see clearly. Don’t depend on human solutions, strategy, or wisdom; look up and look for supernatural wisdom and direction. God is always there to help, but we must slow down and look up. It’s our job to look up to Him. If you don’t, you’ll be overwhelmed by the obstacles that paralyze you with fear and doubt. But when you look up, you’ll see God has everything under control. Look up and rest in Him today.
Application: Fix your eyes on God today.
Prayer: Write out the situations stressing you out, then get your eyes on God. Think about a couple of His attributes and characteristics and sit in those until the peace of Jesus washes over you. Ask God’s Spirit to help you keep your eyes on Him.
“… Our Father in heaven…” Matthew 6:9b (NLT)
- What do You want to say to me today as my Father?
“… may Your name be kept holy.” Matthew 6:9c (NLT)
- What do You want to reveal to me about Your power today?
“May Your Kingdom come soon.” Matthew 6:10a (NLT)
- Help me make Your priorities my priorities today.
“Give us today the food we need,” Matthew 6:11 (NLT)
- Is there anything specific You want me to do with my time or the people I’m around today?
“and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us” Matthew 6:12 (NLT)
- Reveal to me anyone I need to forgive or ask for forgiveness.
“And don’t let us yield to temptation…” Matthew 6:13a (NLT)
- Is there anywhere I’m vulnerable to temptation?