Looking at Things Differently

To see things as God sees them is not to see them with the natural eye........Only the eye of the Holy Spirit can truly enable us to see clearly for these things and our walk with Jesus.

Isaiah 40 v 30

Source: Twitter.com

Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; ³¹but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not be faint.

Soaring on eagle’s wings – speaks of a renewing of strength so that we can not only walk and run but “fly”! What comes with soaring is seeing things from a different perspective – looking at things differently.

Eagles have a highly developed sense of sight which allows them to easily spot prey. In the eagle, the retina's “sweet spot” (fovea) has one million cells per mm² as compared to 200,000 per mm² in humans. Eagles have excellent 20/5 vision compared to an average human who only has 20/20 vison. This means Eagles can see things from 20 feet away that we can only see from 5 feet away. An eagle in flight can reputedly sight a rabbit two miles away.

 

There are a few things that help the eagle see differently to an equivalent animal on the ground. Two important ones are:

    How the eagle’s eye is designed and

    The position from which the eagle is viewing the world

 

I was thinking about this to share with some young men the other Sunday and thought that this helps us in a spiritual sense as well. To see things as God sees them is not to see them with the natural eye. Paul tells us that the natural man cannot receive the things of the Spirit because they are spiritually discerned – they can only be viewed with an inner eye that God has made to see. Again, He has designed this eye. We sing: “Open the eyes of my heart Lord – I want to see You”. How we need that vision in everything: For example, in:

    Reading the bible

    Discerning truth in what we are told

    Judging rightly

    Giving counsel to others

    Getting the right focus for our prayers

    Obtaining guidance for the future …

 

Only the eye of the Holy Spirit can truly enable us to see clearly for these things and our walk with Jesus. So here is where the eagle gets into the right position to use those amazing eyes! The eyes are no good on the ground they have to be in the air – so the eagle rises and soars in the thermals. We are never nearer to the heights of God than when we praise and worship Him. By “praise” I don’t mean “sing” necessarily. Although God gave us music to praise and exalt Him, praise and worship comes from the heart and manifests itself in any way that a Christian either bows the knee to Jesus (worship) or cries out in adoration “Look at Jesus” (praise). This can be in actions that directly offer worship and praise (bowing or falling prostrate before Him, raising hands, crying out, singing, playing instruments, reading or quoting scriptures or other texts that exalt Him etc.) or in actions that come from lives offered to Him that bring forth fruit, showing the love of Jesus to others and openly declaring that our lives belong to Him not ourselves (in this is my Father glorified; that you bear much fruit).

Sourse: Pinterest,com

The object of worship and praise is to bring glory to Jesus and our Father in heaven, and the effect of worship and praise is that we soar in heavenly places where our spiritual eyes can be put to good use! The background to all of this though – the premise – is that we are walking in the Spirit; day by day. Jesus constantly stresses that it is not the hearers of His teachings that receive the promises but those who hear and do them. To have eyes and wings at all we must follow Him and walk with Him day by day. Here are some challenges from scripture starting with Jesus Himself:

 

Matthew 13:13 “This is why I speak to them in parables: “Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand”.

·         If in our hearts we are not really interested in doing things God’s way, will we see things from God’s perspective?

 

James 1:22-24  Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. ²³ Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror ²⁴ and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 

·         If in our hearts we are not really interested in doing things God’s way, will we see ourselves as God sees us?

 

1 Corinthians 2:9-14  But as it is written: “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” ¹⁰ But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God … ¹⁴But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

·         If in our hearts we are not really interested in doing things God’s way, will we see God’s plans for us?

Author: Chris Pearson

May God bless and enrich your life

Please feel free to share this article and other articles on this site with friends, family and others