BP 247
“Lift up your eyes on high and see: who created these?
He who brings out their host by number,
calling them all by name;
by the greatness of his might
and because he is strong in power,
not one is missing” ~ Isaiah 40:26
I went down to the beach early this morning. Only a few people were in sight for a mile in either direction since it was early—the sun had not yet risen—and the breeze was stiff and cool. My ever-roving eyes soon looked down and realized that the retreating tide had left seashells scattered on the sand. So, even though it was not my original intent, I found myself looking down as I walked hoping to find seashells to collect. Gratifying my distraction was pleasurable; I found many shells worth keeping.
Looking down has its rewards.
After about thirty minutes of looking down and collecting shells, I looked up and realized that the sun had risen over the eastern horizon and was painting the waves with beautiful glistening light. I also noticed that the vast stretch of beach ahead of me was coming alive with people.
In that moment, it struck me that I had been so busy looking down searching for the fragile “houses” of (probably deceased) little sea creatures that I didn’t look up to see God’s far more impressive creation of the crashing waves and the morning sky rimmed with orange and the white sugar sand that could easily remind me of Scripture like, “How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! If I would count them, they are more than the sand. I awake, and I am still with you” ~ Psalm 139:17-18
Looking down for seashells also distracted me from looking up into the eyes of man and women approaching me that I could greet with joy and/or pray for as they walked by me. How many of these people are probably empty inside (like those seashells) but have eternal souls that were made to be indwelt by the Spirit of the living God? Do I love these living beings created in God’s image enough to not get so distracted by looking down at dead things but to be aware enough to look up at living beings?
“Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?” ~ Matthew 6:26
Am I saying here that a person should never look down to collect seashells or eat out at a sea food restaurant or take a nap or read a good book? No. I am many things, but I am not a legalist. Never. (At least never by intention.) Joy in Jesus is the fuel in my tank, by God’s grace.
The truth that was impressed on me as I walked along the beach a few hours ago was to enjoy the little things of life but not to miss the bigger things because I’m so fixated on lesser things. I need to continue to practice (very intentionally) a life habit of loving God and loving others more than fleeting things like seashells that are here today and crushed under someone’s feet tomorrow.
“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” ~ Matthew 6:33.
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” ~ John 13:34-35
Is there anything psychologically healthy about looking up instead of looking down? Yes, there is. Corrie Ten Boom, a survivor of a Nazi concentration camp, said it well: “If you look at the world, you’ll be distressed. If you look within, you’ll be depressed. If you look at God you’ll be at rest.” If we’re going to experience psychological peace, we must practice looking up and not looking down or even inside to find our ultimate joy.
While we will need to look inside to clean the inside of the cup as Jesus said, the inside of ourselves will never be the source of our joy and peace. The reason we look inside with the guidance of the Holy Spirit is to remove every obstacle that obstructs us from experiencing God’s presence (2 Corinthians 10:3-5).
So, as you walk along the beach of life today, try not to look down at the world for your joy and your fulfillment. Do your best not to turn inside yourself to find the meaning of life. Look up at Jesus. Fix your eyes on Him and then run the race (Hebrews 12:1-3). Intentionally see the eternal creatures around you who He has created and who He asks you to love with His love.
Don’t major on the seashells of life and minor on those who God made to one day become partakers of the divine nature (2 Peter 1:4)—those descendants of Abraham who are more numerous and precious than the sand on the seashore.
After God reminded me to look up today while walking on the beach, I thought of Scripture I had recently memorized. Two specific passages struck me, one that led me to look up at God and one that inspired me to look at God’s people.
Romans 5:1ff speaks amazing truth about our Savior and God and inspired me to look up at the Creator of the oceans: “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.”
Ephesians 1:15-16 moved me to lift my eyes from seashells that crack and shatter under my shoes to the people walking past me who I might live with in heaven forever: “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.”
Enjoy this world, yes! Just don’t get distracted by it and begin to gaze down at it when Psalm 27 calls us to gaze up on the beauty of the Lord and to remember that we have been given the message and ministry of reconciling (2 Corinthians 5:18-19) our fellow humans to God for an eternity of life and joy.
Wherever you are today, keep your eyes fixed on things that are not transient but eternal. Seek the things that are above where Christ is. Then you will be filled with His joyful Presence that drives the shadows of nihilism and depression far away from your soul.
But remember, it is a journey. And it is not an easy journey. It is never to be done alone.
Child of God, walk with your heavenly Father day by day. Practice His presence even if you must shut out the world. Seek Him with all your heart. Walking and practicing and seeking will, over time, overcome the Opposition in this world that lusts to drive you into darkness and isolation. On this journey, God’s word will be a light to your path and a lamp to your feet. Through His word, His Presence will dwell in your heart.
And love one another. Love Someone, not Something.
Strive to be with God and other people. Settling for anything less will kill your soul.
“Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born descendants as many as the stars of heaven and as many as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore” ~ Hebrews 11:12
“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever” ~ 1 John 2:15-17