What Are You Lookin' At?

"Eyes up here, Class," our sixth grade teacher used to call out when we weren't really paying attention. One of our classmates had the brilliant idea to make balls out of masking tape with the sticky on the outside. He drew an eye on each one. So, one day when she asked for eyes at the front of the room... Yeah, he launched them. I don't recall her reaction. Was he in class the rest of the year? Hmm...

There is a reason she wanted everyone looking to the front of the room. She was in the front of the room. She was the source of the information we needed to acquire. That is where our attention needed to be. Look at all the damage distracted driving has done. When driving, our eyes need to be on the road. If our full attention is on the backseat, or our phones, or the Cheeto we dropped between the seat and the console, there will be things happening on the road we will miss -- things that may require our reaction, things that definitely require our attention. Allowing our focus to be drawn away from the things that are most important can have devastating consequences.

2 Samuel 11:1, tells us there was a time of year when all kings went to battle. On this particular year, King David did not. We're not explicitly told why, but maybe he had a "good reason." Maybe he was tired. Maybe he had full confidence in his men; he had trained them, had passed on the torch, so to speak, and it was all good. No matter the reason, it wasn't God's. I've done that. My excuses have made perfect sense -- to me. "They have plenty of people to help with Vacation Bible School," or, "I've done it for years. Let someone else do it." Is that what God is telling me? Probably not, and He definitely didn't tell David to sit this one out. David looked away from God and His will. The King of Israel put his eyes on his plan, and we know what happened next. He saw Bathsheba, another man's wife. He succumbed to temptation and got her pregnant. He brought Uriah, her husband, back from the battlefield for a little "family time." When he found his soldier would not leave his men to relax with Bathsheba, David hatched a plot to have Uriah killed. David allowed his focus to be drawn away from the Lord, and many suffered. 

Full disclosure, David had been heading this way for a while. This was not the first time he neglected to have his eyes where they belonged. 2 Samuel 3, tells us David had multiple wives and concubines. Satan had found himself a foothold in David's life, sexual sin. All the more reason the king's eyes should have been riveted on the King of kings. We need God each and every moment of every day. Without Him we can do nothing. In those times when we are faced with the things that appear most desirable, we need to move closer to Him, test things against His truth. Maybe you remember the old movies where the guy is wandering around, dehydrated and delirious in the desert, and stumbles upon his last hope -- an oasis. He throws himself into the water and begins to gulp it down as quickly as he can. Draught after draught. Just what he has searched for! Just what he needs! Only to find, it is a mirage. He has been deceived, and has swallowed cup after cup of nothing but sand. And he dies. He did not test what he thought he saw, but threw himself recklessly at a brilliant illusion. David did as well. So have I.

There's a reason coaches tell their players to keep their eyes on the ball. There's a reason driving instructors tell their students to keep their eyes on the road. There's a reason Mrs. Gough demanded we keep our eyes on her. Where your eyes are, your body and mind will follow. May we all be diligent in keeping our eyes on the Lord.