Day –  306

Eye contact with God

_Read: Ezekiel 1,2; Psalm 123; Titus 1_

*Scripture:* Psalm 123: 1 I lift up my eyes to you, to you who sit enthroned in heaven. 2 As the eyes of slaves look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a female slave look to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the Lord our God, till he shows us his mercy.

*Observation:* Eye contact with a person while speaking to him or her is a non-verbal form of communication. In conversations, eye contact indicates the interest, attention, and involvement of the parties involved. In Christianity, prayer is our communication with God. However, we bow our heads and close our eyes when we pray. Interestingly, the Bible does not say we should close our eyes while praying. People give different explanations to support the Christian practice of closing their eyes during prayer. Some say closing our eyes helps us avoid any distractions from prayer and focus our thoughts and minds on God alone. We should remember that the purpose of prayer is not our praying posture or actions but communicating with God. Psalm 123 is one of the Pilgrim songs that travelers sing as they ascend Mount Zion to visit the temple of God in Jerusalem. These pilgrim songs reveal that the pilgrims come from a long distance and look for God’s help for their problems. In Psalm 123, the psalmist expresses that people experienced contempt and ridicule from their arrogant and proud enemies. The psalmist prays for God’s mercies by telling his people’s state.

In the first two verses of Ps.123, the psalmist uses the word eyes four times to give us a better understanding of his petition. The eyes of the servants/slaves look to the hand of their master/mistress, but the psalmist’s eyes look to the Lord his God. While the servants look for provision or direction, the psalmist seeks the face of God, who provides everything. In a way, he says that all he needs is God. A man of God recently shared his concern that God wants his people to seek his face and commune with him daily, but people always look at God’s hands expecting to receive his blessings. Jesus taught us to “seek first his kingdom and his righteousness” (Mt.6:33).

The psalmist prays not only for himself; he also prays for his community as well. He says, “Till he shows us his mercy.” It means that he would patiently wait for God to answer his prayer. When we humbly pray, “Have mercy on me,” God always answers such prayers (Lk.11:10-14). When we look to the Lord our God, we find hope, strength, confidence, and deliverance. God is our strength and salvation. Let us seek his face earnestly every day.

*Application:* I will always seek God’s face. God is my helper; “My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth” (Ps. 121:2). When I face contempt and ridicule, I will say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?” (Heb.13:6). My eyes are on God, not on my problems and enemies.

*Prayer:* Almighty God, thank you for listening to my prayers and answering them without any discrimination. Lord, give me the heart to seek you first in all things and help me live a god-depending life. Amen.

✍️: Arputharaj Samuel
📕: Quiet Time Companion
🗓️  Day –  306