““I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened...””
You have two sets of eyes, the ones in your head and the ones in your heart. The eyes in your head see the outer world while the eyes of your heart can see God. However, the eyes of your heart can also focus on your outer world, which is not a good thing.
The obvious goal is to keep the eyes of your heart focused on God, who lives in you and is not separate from you. This is walking by faith, this is how you look not at the seen but at the unseen, this is how you set your heart on things above, this is how you have great faith, and this is how you stay in perfect peace.
You have a part to play in what your heart is looking at. You can choose to inwardly be aware of God’s presence, his influence, his promises, and his truth, or you let your heart be overwhelmed by the world. Your new heart can’t be corrupted but it can be deceived. Meaning, in your inner man, the place you believe, you can believe lies. The way you become persuaded and influenced by lies is when the eyes of your heart are looking to the world for understanding rather than to God.
It takes humility and faith to not look at what you see and turn to God for a proper perspective. Having God’s perspective and opinion on a matter is vital for success and transformation. It takes humility because you have to lay aside your emotions and opinions to receive God’s perspective and faith because you have to trust God in the midst of the issue.
Great faith is when you can make God bigger within you than the situation is outside of you. The mystery of the kingdom is that as you behold God within you, the external world starts to align with God’s truth. The kingdom is in you to grow out of you, as you keep your inner man focused on him.
What Are You Looking At?
The basis for your heart’s gaze is your hope in Heaven. Scripture teaches us that we have a hope in Heaven, and the message of that hope is the Gospel. We’re also told that that message, that Gospel, that hope that is in Heaven is bearing fruit in the whole world.
How is our hope in Heaven bearing fruit in the world? Through the hearts of humans. The Gospel is not an abstract substance that filters into the world from God, it’s a message about a greater reality. That message is conveyed to humans, deep within our being, in our hearts. Heaven’s message, when received by a heart focused on God, will bear fruit first in itself (the human heart), then in the world around it.
It is vital for Jesus followers to allow God’s message of our hope in Heaven to bear fruit in our lives so we can distribute it to the world around us. Heaven’s fruit in you begins with righteousness, peace, and joy. Your heart’s eyes must be focused on God to allow time for that fruit to grow. We are quick to turn away and look at the condition of our lives and the world if we look away too long that fruit may wither and have to start all over again.
It doesn’t mean you’re a bad person or you’ve lost your salvation, it just means you’ve looked away from God too long.
I realize this message is convicting but some of us need that conviction. Not condemnation but a reminder of our role in discipleship. Your role is to trust God, to keep your inner eyes on him so that when he leads you, you will be familiar with what he looks like and will follow.
Try This
Try this meditative exercise. Sit quietly and think about God, whatever comes up is fine. Focus your attention on him until your awareness of him is “bigger” than anything else. Think about him until he’s the most prominent thought in your mind. Then let your thoughts shift toward that issue you’re dealing, whether it be your spouse, your job, your kids, your finances, your health, and see if you can allow God to stay “bigger” than all of those things. Acknowledge him in each and every issue, acknowledge that he has wisdom and revelation for you. Notice the smallest, most subtle idea that arises. Make not of it, make sure it’s consistent with scripture, then act on it. You hear and see God better than you think, try it and watch him lead your paths.
