The Eyes of God. . .

It is a land the Lord your God cares for; the eyes of the Lord our God are continually on it from the beginning of the year to its end.
- Deuteronomy 11:12

What land? And what year? It was around the year 1400 B.C. It was the Land of Milk and Honey: The Promised Land. And in the context of this passage in Deuteronomy, the Israelites are being equipped to set out and possess the land. They did not yet physically control the land – their right to the territory hadn’t yet materialized. Yet they already seemed to have power over this land through eyes of faith.

And guess what? This same beautiful illustration is ours: God’s caring and attentive eyes are always looking upon us. And we - like the Israelites - can put our concerns and uneasiness into God’s hand of infinite grace and possess strength to face the yet-unseen future. 2006 is our Land. It could be a year of spiritual drought. It could be a year of graceful abundance. Either way, as believers, we can settle in “green pasture and lie down beside the still water.”

“The eyes of the Lord…” What precisely does that mean? Surely it is more than just Omniscience. I don't know for certain. But let’s just envision the delight and enchantment in the eyes of a loving and devoted parent as they watch their young child achieve something for the very first time. Now, see in your mind's eye: the deep love of God’s eyes as He watches His creation. He watches each of us with personal interest. This looking-after is not delegated to some other heavenly creature. God Himself watches us! The heart of Deity looks after us! And he never stops watching after us. This special watch-care is unbroken. It’s continuous. This unwearied power of God toward His people has been uninterrupted since the creation of the world! No human effort, no lyricist, no gifted writer, no dramatist could ever sufficiently make plain or explain God’s watch-care over His own.

It’s time we switched to the flip side. We need to take an honest look at our eyes. If God is ceaselessly and unwarily watching us, should not our eyes be upon Him? Constantly?! Sad thing is I’m afraid we don’t even come close. We get caught up in our days -- setting our sights on the temporal and the frivolous – and we don’t look for Him or see Him at all.

While the rest of the world is settling in for the few weeks of agony that goes along with keeping “New Year’s Resolutions,” let us resolve to cultivate the practice of looking to and seeing God in all of 2006.

- Pastor Mark