To You I lift up my eyes, O You who are enthroned in the heavens!

Psalm 123: 1

 

As I walk through the valley that is the pathway through many of the days of this life, I frequently find that my steps are awkward or that my way gets confused. There can be this powerful sense that the right and the righteous goal of this journey is near by, but my eyes just don’t seem to find it. These points in the day are frequently characterized by a heavy, overhanging cloud that carries the name despair, frustration, loneliness, or even defeat.

 

Yet, regardless of the thickness of this cloud, a voice reaches out to my heavy heart. Even as my ears are ringing with exhaustion and my mind doesn’t want to engage with another thought, the Spirit of Christ reaches out to remind me that He is not just near but that He is an inseparable and an integral part of every moment and of each aspect of my being. As the mist is swirling about my heart and its palpable density obscures my sight, Christ continues to see my true path, and He speaks out to guide me toward its comfort and security.

 

As I am concerned about stumbling and falling, my human tendency is to focus my eyes on the ground that is before me. However, it is very hard to maintain balance while looking at my feet, and it is very easy to lose sight of the guideposts of God’s will when I am searching the ground before me. Christ calls to me and reminds me that I need to be looking up. When my eyes are set on His face and my heart is listening to His voice, there is strength in my steps and there is equilibrium in my thinking. Christ speaks to my soul, and He continually reminds me that He is there before me and with me for every step that I need to take today. So, as I look up and into His glorious face, Christ places my feet on the smooth stones of His heavenly path.