Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus

Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace.

I first sung ‘Turn your Eyes Upon Jesus’ as a child in Sunday School. I’ve been familiar with it all my life. It’s often returned to me – sometimes as a comfort, sometimes as a challenge. I’m reminded, encouraged to look at Jesus and somehow everything else is put into perspective. I see problems and priorities in a fresh light.

It was later that I learnt that it was a chorus, part of a longer hymn. I’ve heard many versions sung by choirs and soloists; sometimes I feel that we lose the simplicity of the message in the arrangement. That’s why I like this Alan Jackson version.

O soul, are you weary and troubled?
No light in the darkness you see?
There’s light for a look at the Saviour,
And life more abundant and free!

On Friday I attended John’s funeral. We read Psalm 23 – ‘The Lord is my Shepherd’. Pete, leading the service focused on, ‘Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me…’

It’s about times of darkness, difficulties, despair… We walk through our dark valley accompanied by the shepherd… light in the darkness comes by looking to Jesus… we can see what we’re doing and where we’re going.

Thro’ death into life everlasting,
He passed, and we follow Him there;
O’er us sin no more hath dominion–
For more than conqu’rors we are! 

This morning I read Psalm 42. The Psalmist is in his dark place: ‘My tears have been my food day and night.’ He responds with the repeated conclusion:

Why, my soul, are you downcast?
    Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
    for I will yet praise him,
    my Saviour and my God.

It’s a similar message. We don’t have to accept things as they are. We don’t have be resigned to being passive accepters of our troubles, darkness and fate. We don’t have to blame someone else. We can be proactive… ‘Turn our eyes upon Jesus’, ‘Put our hope in God’.

As I do this I see things in a different perspective. I let go of my anger, frustration, bitterness, past, rights, demands… all those things that are outside my control. I hand over my anger, frustration, bitterness, past, rights, demands… to the God who provides glory and grace, hope and security.