What Are You Looking At?

I spent a considerable amount of time this last weekend thinking about the reality of seeking first the Giver and not the gifts, the promises and all the other things that are ours through the redemptive work of Christ.  It seemed like everything I looked at brought home another point on this subject.  Through it all, I could see the error of my ways at different times in my life.

As a Pastor who actively believes in the anointing of God working through believer’s lives, I have personally felt the power of God flow through me as I have laid hands on believers when they came forward for prayer at the end of a service.  It is a feeling that can be compared to nothing else that I have experienced before.  It is a phenomenon that I have heard taught at church for many years and have witnessed at countless church services, conventions, camps and prayer meetings.  As a student of the great revivals of the past, I have also hungrily devoured book upon book describing the miraculous works that have followed the teaching of the Word throughout the world. (See Mark 16:15-20) But lately I came to the personal revelation that I might just have been spending more time seeking the gifts, the power and the miracles instead of the One behind them.

This stark reality check came to me after I had opened up my heart to a friend and shared many of the things that were behind the difficult emotional times that I have been experiencing of late.  By expressing my thoughts to a caring and attentive ear, I became aware of some of the triggers of the negative emotional state I was attempting to fight through.  I think the straw that broke the camel’s back of the weight I had been carrying was when I realized my reactions to my wife as I greeted her each morning.

After spending an hour or more first thing in the morning, building myself up in the wonderful truths of God’s Word, I would go in the bedroom proclaiming my wife’s healing only to be greeted by a smile backed up with distant eyes and a drawn face.  And instantly my high emotional state was popped like a balloon pierced by a sharp pin.  This weekend it finally dawned at me that I was looking for the results and not the results Giver in her!

In Matthew 5:6 Jesus instructed us saying: “Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” (English Standard Version)  Matthew 6:33 says to “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added to you.”  (KJV)  Both of these verses are telling us to keep our eyes on Him and not the things that you are believing for or else you won’t be satisfied!  As I meditated on this over the weekend I began to understand why believers become disappointed and confused when they don’t receive the healing, the provision, the answer or anything else that they have requested in faith from the Lord in a timely manner.

When our eyes are focused solidly on the Lord instead of the requested item, we stay in peace and joy until such time as we experience the manifestation of what He has promised us in agreement with His Word.  Wow, what a relief to understand this!  Hebrews 12:2 tells us that “We must focus on Jesus the source and goal of our faith.” (God’s Word ©)  By keeping our eyes on Him we keep our faith strong from the beginning of our stand until the completion of it.

I’m sure that I’ll have more on this subject as this week progresses, but as for today, I would encourage you to join me in singing the chorus to that powerful hymn written by Helen H. Lemmel in 1922 as an exhortation of Hebrews 12:2 proclaiming:

len“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.”

Have a great day.  Stay focused and in tune to Him and His Word, and keep asking yourself… “What am I expecting today?”