In the morning, O Lord, You will hear my voice; in the morning I will order my prayer to You and eagerly watch.
Psalm 5:3
The Washington Post featured a story in 2009 of Emma Daniel Gray who died on June 8, 2009, at the age of 95. For 24 years she was the woman who cleaned the office of the President of the United States. She served six presidents until she retired in 1979. Mrs. Gray was a devout Christian from Edgefield, S.C. who moved to Washington, D.C. in 1943 with her husband, William Gray. Her unofficial title was “chairwoman.” Each night for 24 years she would clean the White House, and each time she approached the president’s chair she would stand and pray—one hand holding the cleaning supplies and the other hand on the chair. She’d pray for blessings, wisdom, and safety. While reflecting on the way she lived life, her pastor, Bishop Royce Woods said,
“She saw life through the eyes of promise is the way I’d put it. You can always look around and find reasons to be [unhappy]…but you couldn’t be around her and not know what she believed.”
Mrs. Gray passed away as the matriarch of six generations, and as a true inspiration to countless others, including 6 men who sat in the chair of the most powerful office in the world.
“Seeing life through the eyes of promise.” What an incredible description of one who prays: the eyes of promise. The Scriptures describe faith as the conviction of things unseen (Hebrews 11:1). Therefore, our lives manifest true faith when the perspective focuses on God’s promises. The Scriptures also announce that all the promises of God are “yes” and “amen” in Jesus (2 Corinthians 1:20). The promises of God have been fulfilled and ratified in Christ. While in His earthly ministry, Jesus lived as the incarnate manifestation of all of God’s promises. Through His death and resurrection, all the promises stand perfectly fulfilled. Even promises not yet realized are nonetheless fulfilled in Jesus. In Revelation 3:14, our Lord is called the “Amen,” which means, “true, faithful, and certain.” All the promises made through our blessed Redeemer shall be fulfilled. All the promises of God are founded on this blessed redemption. The promises are confirmed and established and will not fail.
So today, begin now to see your relationships, your days ahead, your family, your career, your uncertainties, your sickness, your burdens, and your dreams through the eyes of promise. But more so, see this very moment (as the sun breaks over the horizon, and as your energy attempts to mount up for the day ahead), and see every step you take today through the eyes of promise.
How can you begin your day in this way? Consider the example of David’s words in Psalm 5: “In the morning you will hear my voice; in the morning I will order my prayer to you and eagerly watch.” (The Hebrew terminology of this verse forms the idea of an ancient watchtower that represented a committed vigil.) To look up to our Heavenly Father in complete confidence, even as Jesus instructed, becomes the posture of faith from this verse. Notice that David’s statement of praise has three significant movements: (1) David took the initiative to come before God (“In the morning O Lord, You will hear my voice”); (2) David ordered his prayers before God (expressing his heart of praise and His burden of petition and intercession); (3) David eagerly watched and waited (looking up as a watchman with eyes of faith fixed intently on God).
Of these three movements in David’s life, most would agree that the third seems to be the most problematic to achieve: watching and waiting. (Sitting for a moment to listen to God. Turning down the music on your drive in to work to give God an opportunity to speak. Resisting the impulse to scroll through your screen, and instead laying down your device and simply asking God to open your heart to His.) Quieting oneself before God seems a formidable task for most, but quiet moments before God are not as out of reach as one might think. And, oh the joy of being still before the creator of the universe, and the Savior and sustainer of your soul. Oh, how marvelous to have your faith strengthened for all that He will reveal to you in the moments ahead. He is the One, and the only One, in whom all the promises of God are fulfilled.
Today, see your life and your day ahead through the eyes of promise – through the perspective of your faith in Jesus Christ. And in doing so, you will become a God intended blessing to all you meet.
You may think to yourself, “who am I to bless someone else?’’ I am sure that was what Emma Gray once thought.Posture yourself for God’s greatness to be revealed in you through Jesus and see with eyes of promise.
BLESSINGS,
Ken
READ
Read Psalm 5:1-12 to strengthen your eyes of promise.
