Eye-Guidance (an antidote for stress)

We (must) have all experienced times when we have looked (in a certain way) at a child, spouse, sibling or friend and they knew exactly what to say or not say, what to do or not do, or what they have done wrong. We may also have experienced receiving such guiding looks from our mothers (mostly). That is what I call Eye-Guidance. You will agree with me that following Mum’s eye-guidance reduces stress as we will definitely keep out of trouble.

I have been thinking about this lately and I remember reading in Psalm 33:18 that the eye of the LORD is upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy (KJV). WHY? One reason is PROTECTION. God watches over us to protect us. Another reason, of course is GUIDANCE. Psalm 32:8 says “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye”.

Sapphire’s stress entry got me thinking about the eye-guidance principle. As a child, when we were in public, my mummy could guide us with her eyes. She could clearly indicate what we can or cannot touch, taste, smell or eat; who we should relate with and how. It was so interesting to obey and follow through with Mum’s eye-guidance as failure to do so results in grave penalties. As a mother, I have found myself adopting the eye-guidance tactics and it does produce good results. My children seem to understand it – of course the older one understands more than the younger one. So maturity affects their understanding of the eye-guidance principle.

Let’s get back to God.

He does guide us with His eyes, but this can only work under the following conditions (which hold true even in our mothers’ time)
1.There must be a relationship – the closer the better.
2.As we mature in the relationship, there will be less friction or misunderstanding of the intentions
3.The person being guided must want to be guided – in the case of the child, he/she will always look to mum when not sure of what to do.
4.This leads to the last point – our eyes must be on his face. If we do not take time to seek God’s face, we will never be able to benefit from His eye-guidance.

Of course, as in the natural, there are dire consequences for not following through on available eye-guidance. In the spiritual sense, not only do we risk God’s wrath, we also expose ourselves to the wiles of the enemy.

One sure way to reduce the pressures of life and be too blessed to be stressed is by following God’s eye-guidance. Let us all therefore be mindful of the promise “I will guide thee with mine eye”, appreciate it and earnestly seek His Face.