Our eyes are on you
Photo from https://www.anyahindmarch.com/pages/anyas-summer-shop
Our children are adults now and are living their own lives. When we all get together, we often share stories of them growing up. It’s great fun recounting them together.
A particular highlight for me includes the time when we were at the beach and our daughter, who must have been under 10 at the time, got a little too close to the breaking waves and got covered in sea water. She found it all very amusing.
They like to remind me of how I would get annoyed with them when they were naughty and how (badly) I handled things! Fortunately, they are very forgiving, and we have a good laugh about it.
On another holiday we went to the onsite shop. You know the kind of shops at holiday parks that sell your basic supplies, and have lots of sweets, toys and seaside items, like buckets and spades.
Each of our children had been given some ‘holiday money’ from their grandparents, and they were allowed to choose a holiday treat/gift in the shop.
I stood back to let them choose and then go to the shop counter and pay for it with their cash! They were a bit nervous, and they looked at me for guidance and support.
All was well and they each came away with something they had chosen and paid for themselves. I will always remember the look they gave me as they nervously approached the checkout.
In the Old Testament, in the Bible, the historical book of 2 Chronicles records the various Kings of Judah. One such King was called Jehoshaphat. He was a good King, who followed God’s ways.
There was a time when they were under attack. Jehoshaphat went to the Temple and prayed to God for help, and he ended his prayer like this…
“We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.”
I love the way Jehoshaphat was so honest before God. He was faced with imminent attack, and he did not have the answer within himself. But he was wise and humble enough to turn to God.
We all go through times when we don’t know what to do. Where do you turn for guidance in those situations? Jehoshaphat, turned to God and asked for His help. The Bible goes on to say that God heard his prayer and answered by divine intervention.
Just like my young children needed to know I was there in that holiday gift shop, God is always there, and I believe, He wants to be involved in our daily lives.
Let me encourage you, the next time you don’t know what to do, turn your eyes towards God and ask for His help.
God bless you :)
Gary Bastin - Hope Community Church leader