I love going on road trips. When I was a child my parents set out to take my brother and me to as many states as possible before we left home. I think we hit about 45 of them so we saw a great deal of the United States. Many fond memories were made by driving through the Civil War battlegrounds in Vicksburg Mississippi, the monuments in Washington D.C., the foothills of the Smokey mountains, the deserts of Nevada, and the plains of Kansas. We were able to see things like Mount Rushmore, Dorothy’s ruby slippers, the White House, the Great Sand Dunes, Old Faithful and so much more. I treasure those memories and have longed to see my kids experience those same things.
Unfortunately, the digital world has made it more difficult for kids to raise up their heads and see what is on the other side of the window. I understand the difficulty. All we had to distract us was an annoying sibling or crossword puzzle. The digital world gives us access to things without ever having to leave the house. If my kids want to see what the inside of the White House looks like they Google it. If they want to learn the history of Mount Rushmore they just, as my 10 year old daughter says, “search it up!” But for all of us who have actually climbed to Machu Picchu what we know is there is no magazine article that can do it justice….you need to hike the Inca Trail to really appreciate the splendor of the “Lost City of the Incas.”
I can’t tell you the number of times on a family road trip I say to my kids, “devices down….look out the window.” Why? Because I don’t want them to miss what is literally right in front of them. I don’t want them to miss the majesty of the mountains, the splendor of the seas, the strength of the warships or the gentleness of the wheat fields. I not only want them to see it, I also want them to experience it.
I wonder if maybe some believers have their heads down right now? I wonder if maybe out of fear, worry, complacency or simple disinterest there are christians among us who are traveling through this season of life with their heads down and unaware of all that is happening around the world? I wonder if maybe we could all say: Lift up your eyes church! Lift up your eyes and see the good thing God is doing! Don’t miss it! He is doing miraculous things right outside of your window. A powerful movement of God is taking place within arms reach and if you aren’t careful you will miss it.
I suppose one could argue that when all of this passes everyone will be able to google what happened and read all of the stories. History will record that more people connected with churches on-line than ever before. History will record stories of heroism as the faith community rallied and provided physical care and resources for the marginalized and forgotten of society. History will record the numbers of people who gave their lives to Christ during the COVID-19 crisis. History will record the church grew stronger under the pressure of a broken and fallen world. History will indeed record all of these things for future generations to read and perhaps even celebrate.
I would simply remind you of this…..we are here right now! We are living this story in real time.
Lift up your eyes church and see all that God is doing! Lift up your eyes and celebrate the presence and faithfulness of our great God and King! Lift up your eyes and take it all in as you see the hand of God doing the miraculous right before your eyes. Be a part of the story that will be told for generations to come.
Lift up your eyes!
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