Who Are You Looking For?

Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art;
Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.

Be Thou My Vision (6th century)
By: Saint Dallán Forgaill (c. 560 – 640)

Listen to this modern version of this ancient hymn as you prepare to ponder the lyrics. Please make certain to enjoy the video below.

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Everyone, enjoy this video, and the transcript below.

Transcript may be found below, at the end of the blog.

As we begin our journey through this ancient text and hymn, make each stanza your own by praying through it. Let’s tune our hearts.

Vision

We must see everything against the backdrop of the cross. I believe it was Henry Blackaby, the author or “Experiencing God” who said that. It has shaped my perspective for years, and comes to bear on lines like this one.

Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;

For your steadfast love is before my eyes, and I walk in your faithfulness. Psalm 26:3 ESV

Where is the steadfast love of God better on display than at the cross? What can help inform our walk better than the steps of Jesus up the hill to Calvary? If we keep the cross central in our sight, seeing His love and walking in His faithfulness becomes a much simpler endeavor.

This entire hymn is a beautiful prayer, starting with these first lines. We acknowledge God as the Sovereign One in our internal workings, our heart, and ask that His presence be our guide externally as well. Make this your prayer as we begin to journey through this ancient song.

What are you looking toward or for? What are you aspiring to? For the Christian, the answer to those questions should be Jesus, and being like Christ respectively. This is an ancient Irish prayer of protection and it starts by centering on Christ. Is that where you begin?

RESONATE!
Ask the Father to help you begin your journey through this incredible text by centering on Jesus. Take a few moments and talk to Him about things that might be competing with your focus on Him. Be honest and sincere, echoing the heart of the text.

Everything

This second line of this great hymn is definitely worth pondering. It is artistic, genuine and powerful in its simplicity. Consider that it is a translation from the the original prayer and it becomes even more remarkable.

Read it, and without looking ahead at the Scripture or the thoughts below answer these questions. What does that mean? How might I express that in more modern language? Then by all means, please read on.

Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art;

Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ Philippians 3:8 ESV

Be nothing else to me other that what you already are. This acknowledges that we believe He possesses everything we need, we are satisfied in Him, and desire nothing else. How many of our problems would be solved if we rested in this truth? Ask Him to help you today.

We want Him to be nothing more than our highest aspiration, but we definitely want Him to be that. Or do we? If you had to strip all other pursuits away except for one, what would that one be? Christlikeness? Ask Him to be your everything, and nothing more.

RESONATE!
What is God to you? Is He everything? Is He something less? Ask Jesus to help you see Him for who He really is, and to become everything to you.

Jesus, fill my field of vision until I see nothing but You, and everything against the backdrop of Your cross. Take me on a journey of finding my satisfaction in You and You alone. In Jesus’ name. Amen!

Visionary Tuning!

Keep coming back, and we will work to help you remove the things that may hinder your longing for His return by cultivating an awareness of God’s presence. We will help you tune your heart to live out your worship by providing resources like this to help you acknowledge the greatness of God as you become more Resonant, 7 days a week.

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Video 25.1 Transcript

Welcome to Tuesday Tunings at Resonant 7, where we reflect on the reality of God and resolve to let it resound in our lives, repeatedly. Let’s tune our hearts.

Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art;
Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.

What are you looking toward or for? What are you aspiring to? For the Christian, the answer to those questions should be Jesus, and being like Christ respectively. This is an ancient Irish prayer of protection and it starts by centering on Christ. Is that where you begin?

Father, help me to begin by centering on You.

We want Him to be nothing more than our highest aspiration, but we definitely want that. Or do we? If you had to strip all other pursuits away except for one, what would that one be? Christlikeness? Ask Him to be your everything, and nothing more.

Jesus, be my everything.

Daydreams and nightdreams, every conscious and unconscious thought all find their value somewhere below Jesus. He is our best thought, and allowing Him to hold that position informs our actions and attitudes both day and night. Tell Him He is your best thought.

Lord, You are my best thought.

His presence makes the difference in every circumstance, whether we are living it or dreaming of it. The terrors evoked by the dark night of the soul are no match for His countenance. The next time you are facing any darkness, maybe right now, ask the Spirit to shine bright.

Spirit, shine Your brightness into my life.

Take a few moments to talk to Jesus about what has surfaced in your heart, or just listen to what He is saying to you, then we will sing once more.

Sing

Take the awareness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes into the next ones and beyond.  Until next time, Be Resonant.

The post Who Are You Looking For? appeared first on Resonant 7.

Image Attributions
Be Thou My Vision, O Lord of My Heart – https://pixabay.com/photos/eye-iris-look-focus-green-1132531/
Naught Be All Else to Me, Save That Thou Art  – https://pixabay.com/photos/question-mark-question-mark-symbol-3470783/