Catching
His Eye
by Linda Valen
"you have ravished my heart and given me courage with one look
from your eyes." Song of Solomon 4:9
The
eyes of the Lord have many purposes in the Word but I'm only going to share a
couple of things with you today.
Many
years ago I read "Hind's Feet on High Places" by Hannah Hunnard and it impacted
my life greatly. It is an allegory that is full of adventures, invitations, and
challenges that everyone can relate to in life. The story is like a mirror that
reveals your own heart.
Much
Afraid (she was afraid of everything) was a young lady who was physically
crippled but her heart and emotions were too. The Good Shepherd (Jesus) would
invite her to come with Him to the mountains/high places as seen in Habakkuk 3:19 (KJV) says, "The LORD God
is my strength, and he will make my feet like hinds' feet, and he will make me
to walk upon mine high places."
But
each time He asked her, she would look dumbfounded when the invitation came
again and again. "Are You kidding?!?! How can I possibly climb mountains
with you when level ground is hard for me to walk on anyway?" she thought
to herself. Yet He continued to invite her.
One
day she was at the city fountain getting water and He asked Much Afraid once
again to come with Him to the high places. Before she could blurt out her
usual, "No," her eye caught His eye. In that momentary locked gaze,
something changed. She found herself saying, "Yes!"
What
was The Good Shephard's response? He laughed for joy and the story says that
His laughter echoed through the mountains and the valleys!!! He was SO excited
that she would actually trust Him and accept His invitation!!
Have
you caught His eye looking at you? Has your obedience caused Jesus to laugh for
joy about your life?
He's
inviting you to go deeper into His heart but perhaps you're afraid of what that
will mean and what it will cost you?
Or
maybe you have been through so many battles and hurts that you've lost heart
and lost your way? Jesus says in Job
29:24 (Amplified), "I smiled on them when they had no confidence, and their
depression did not cast down the light of my countenance." THAT
is the heart of Jesus for you!
The Laughing Jesus
Jill
Austin and I were on a six week trip to several cities in New Zealand a few
years ago and even though we knew that the travel schedule was going to be very
demanding, we were so excited to see God moving in such powerful ways that we
just kept moving from city to city.
During
our meetings in each city, we often went from 7 pm to midnight or later.
Afterwards we'd usually have a meal with the pastor and his family and debrief
about the events of the evening. After one of the meetings, we came home to eat
but I was starting to feel the effects of the long tour to the point that I
skipped the meal and went directly to bed.
I
said to the Lord, "I feel really terrible. If I could sleep for a month, I
feel like I might start feeling normal again. I don't know what to do. We're
not even halfway through this tour yet and I already feel wasted!"
As
I lay in bed talking to Jesus, His face suddenly appeared before me and He was
laughing! I was intrigued by His eyes, especially. They were
"laughing" eyes and they almost looked three dimensional, like little
bits of broken glass reflecting light.
My
immediate reaction was to laugh, too, which made Him laugh even more. He'd
throw His head back and just "lose it", which made me laugh so hard
that my face and stomach hurt. This went on for a long time! It was as though
the laughter had a life of its own.
Suddenly
it dawned on me that I was in the bedroom right next to the living room where
Jill and the pastor and his wife were talking. Could they hear me? If so, what
must they be thinking to hear me laughing so hard - and all by myself!!! That
made me laugh even harder! I can't remember when I've laughed that hard for
that long!
I
fell asleep and when I woke up in the morning, I was so totally refreshed that
I felt like I was on a vacation! I was amazed and so thankful to Jesus for
answering my prayer in a way I never imagined! Even thinking about it that
morning caused me to re-see the face of Jesus and I started to laugh and enjoy
the memory again and again…..even years later!
The
Lord reminded me that a pastor in New Zealand had given me a word that the Lord
was going to give me seasons of "drunkenness" to offset the weariness
of the road. This was my first installment!
Laughter
is medicine for the soul and it totally refreshed me! I read an article which
said that fifteen minutes of gut level laughter was equivalent to eight hours
of sleep. We all need to laugh a lot more than we do! Sometimes we take life
and ourselves too seriously. Proverbs
17:22 (Amplified) says, "A happy heart is good medicine and a cheerful mind
works healing, but a broken spirit dries up the bones."
Jesus Is A Heart Man!
Whether
you are married or single, this truth is for you!! Jesus thought of you and
then He created you! Yes, you are His idea! While you were in your mother's
womb, He knew you and called you by name, proudly declaring that "YOU are
MINE!"
Jesus
is such a heart man and His heart for you is uncommon! His love for you is
extravagant! He loves you deeply, cares for you watchfully and affectionately
(I Peter 5:7), and His eyes watch over you whether you know or believe it. His
penetrating gaze is real! His love is a deep expression of His passionate heart
for you.
No,
you can't earn His love, you don't deserve it, His love isn't selective, it
knows no boundaries, and it's not conditional upon you doing something first.
He pours it out extravagantly to you every single day --- it's yours to accept
or reject. It is all consuming and it is life-changing when you truly encounter
His loving presence in your life.
His
heart of love for you goes way beyond what most of us really know, understand
or experience. If you really knew how much He loves you, you'd act differently,
think differently about others, think differently about yourself and you
certainly would live differently!
There
is no one in the universe who can love you like Jesus can!
Today
is a day for you to really receive His pure love for you! It is also a day to
pour out your love to Him.
He
would say to you, "My child, I want your life to be as beautiful as it was
in My mind when I first thought of you."
May
the intense love God has for you will be so real to you that you will feel
completely overcome, overtaken, and overwhelmed with His pure love for you!
May
you catch His eye - for He has His eye on you!
Linda Valen