via TJC
“But my eyes are fixed on you, Sovereign LORD;
In you I take refuge — do not give me over to death.”
—Psalm 141:8 NIV.
Here are a list of thoughts I’ve had while “worshiping” Jesus at church:
Why does Joe worship like a stone statue?
Why does Bob worship like a car dealership inflatable man?
How could Joe be arriving this late?
Bob’s been working out lately...
Joe has NOT been working out lately…
That’s a cool guitar.
She’s pretty.
Let’s see what shoes the sneakerhead bass player is wearing today.
Boy, she’s really pretty.
Who is it that is singing like THAT behind me? Let me see if I can strategically turn around and look…
Every man reading this DBO today goes to a different church. Some worship like [this]. Some worship like [that]. But the one thing we all have in common (I hope) is we go to a church that spends some amount of time worshiping Jesus with our voices. And during that time of worship, we all have the choice between fixing our eyes on the Sovereign LORD (as today’s Anchor Verse encourages), or letting our eyes wander like Curious George looking for bananas.
Do you want to know a great strategy to fix your eyes on God? The answer is this:
Close them.
Close your eyes. The God we worship is presently invisible to us, and Jesus has ascended into heaven. Make no mistake—He’s as real as the words you are reading now. But, at this moment, He has chosen to hide His face from us. So what good is it to look at everything around us while we worship our great God? It is nothing but Satan’s attempts to distract us during the most opportunistic time in our week to give glory to God!
Daily Battle Order:
Try it right now. Worship Jesus in song while closing your eyes. Focus on the lyrics. Fix your eyes on the Sovereign LORD like a trained warrior focuses during battle. Make every effort to block out the things horizontal to you so that you can focus on Him who is vertical to you.
Worship with TJC this morning:
Have you gotten rusty or maybe never heard the preparation you need to be victorious on your battlefields? This is your call to action – Join The Joshua Commission and your Kingdom brothers at Manassas Battlefield May 19-21, 2023.
Amen!