Where Does My Help Come From?
As the Israelites in the time of King David ‘ascended’ the Judean hills toward Jerusalem they sang:
“I lift my eyes up to the hills. Where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, maker of heaven and earth” (Psalm 121: 1, 2 NIV).
The ‘hills’ refers to Mount Zion, the dwelling place of God. They are literally lifting their eyes up to the top of a mountain, as well as figuratively lifting up the eyes of their hearts, above their day-to-day situations and distractions of life, to God. They look up to God because that is where their help comes from – help to take their next breath, form their next thought, make every decision, and deal with life’s victories, defeats, and tragedies.
Each of us is on a journey. Some are walking on the narrow road that leads to life. Others are walking on the broad road that leads to destruction (Matthew 7: 13, 14). Whichever road we are on, all of us will be judged by fire for our decisions and actions. Some will pass through the fire; others will be consumed by the fire.
All of us will be faced with challenges on our journey – broken relationships, the lost jobs or problems at work, financial difficulties, unexpected illnesses or diseases, accidents, depression, personal attacks, or just bad days. Jesus said, “In this life you will suffer”, and, was he right! Of course, He also said, “But don’t worry, I have overcome the world.” And how did He overcome the world? Well, for one thing, He kept His eyes focused on His Heavenly Father. He always “lifted His eyes up to the hills”.
What does this mean for me? How can this psalm change my life?
I will not ignore my struggles or the world’s problems, pretending they don’t exist. They are real. But I have the power to choose. I can choose to keep my eyes focused on the difficulties right in front of me. I can let the struggle, whatever it is, dominate (and often confuse) my thinking, sucking up all my time and energy.
Or I can lift my eyes up above and beyond the difficulty – look past it in a sense – to the hills where my help comes from – God’s help to deal with whatever life throws at me. True, the world’s help (doctors, auto mechanics, lawyers, for example) is often a Godsend. But I will always lift my eyes up to the hills first and then apply the world’s help in accordance with the will and direction of the Creator of the universe.
As I see it, there are three reasons why we should always lift our eyes up to the hills to look for help rather than try to solve the problems ourselves:
First, if we focus on the situation right in front of us, we will usually try to ‘fix’ it, leaving God out of the picture. This often leads to a less-than-perfect or even disastrous outcome. It is also idolatry. In a small way, this is the path chosen by the builders of the Tower of Babel. They didn’t need God either.
Second, when we focus on the situation right in front of us, trying to fix it in our own power, the consequences are often fear, despair, frustration, and anxiety because usually the problem is much bigger (or seems much bigger) than we are equipped to handle on our own. Think of Moses, the Israelites, and the Red Sea.
Third, God uses these situations and problems in our lives to place in our hearts something of Himself. When we don’t “look up to the hills”, when we get distracted by the problem or situation, we miss out on God’s blessing for us.
God generally is not the author of the difficulties and trauma in our lives. But, if we let Him, He will use these situations to make us more like Him. When we “look up to the hills” we are telling Him, “Lord, I need You (humility); I trust You and place my life completely in Your Hands (surrender); You know best – Your will be done (submission).” And in those acts of surrender and submission there is a transaction. As we lift our burden to Him, He takes it from us; instead of darkness, fear, and confusion, we receive light, peace, and clarity.
When we “lift our eyes up to the Hills”, coming into His presence, we see Him more clearly. He becomes more real to us, and we become more like Jesus. When we “lift our eyes up to the hills” our faith is increased, our joy is made more complete, and we walk in this world with more power.
His promises are amazing – read Psalm 121. Among other things, He promises to protect us from evil. We don’t need to ‘cross our fingers’, ‘knock on wood’, or wish each other ‘good luck’ when we are facing hard decisions or difficult circumstances. Those sentiments are powerless. They offend God. I will lift my eyes up to the hills. If you offer to do the same on my behalf, I will welcome that.
Finally, what does it mean to “lift my eyes up to the hills?”
First, it means to praise Him in every circumstance. Praise releases power.
Second, it means to pray and give thanks for whatever situation you find facing you. “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God” (Philippians 4: 6 NIV).
“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians 5: 16 NIV).
These two – praise and prayer – go together. When we praise Him and thank Him in prayer for difficult circumstances (!), He releases power to alter the circumstances. If you want to understand this spiritual principle, read “Prison to Praise” by Merlin Carothers.
Third, we do this by setting our hearts and minds on the things above. “Since then you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not earthly things” (Colossians 3: 1, 2 NIV). Paul tells us, “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is pure, whatever is right, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things” (Philippians 4: 8 NIV).
Lastly, we focus on Jesus. Our life is hidden in Him. “For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3: 3 NIV). He is our strength, our wisdom and determination, our hope, and our joy.
“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart” (Hebrews 12: 2, 3 NIV).
In Christ, we can face whatever the world throws at us and not grow weary or lose heart.
Proverbs sums up this post well: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3: 6,5 NIV).
One last thought. If we lift our eyes up to the hills in all circumstances, if we trust Jesus with all of our heart and acknowledge Him in all of our ways, we can be like the prophet Habakkuk, who understood the secret of a powerful spiritual life.
“Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior. The Sovereign Lord is my strength; He makes my feet like the feet of a deer, He enables me to go to the heights. ” (Habakkuk 3: 17, 18 NIV).
I will lift my eyes up to the hills in all circumstances, for there my help will always be found. And out of that help will flow my joy and strength. And why? For unto us a child is born, unto us a Savior is given – His law is love and His gospel is peace. This is where it all begins!
Merry Christmas, John