Look To Our Maker

Isaiah 17:7-8
In that day men will look to their Maker and turn their eyes to the Holy One of Israel. They will not look to the altars, the work of their hands, and they will have no regard for the Asherah poles and the incense altars their fingers have made.


Why is it that we have a tendency to idolize and look up to everything but God? Even those things that are intended to direct our attention to God can end up taking His place. Our pastors, our Bibles, our quiet-time, even our service can become a replacement for the Lord Himself.

How often do we say, "if I only had more faith." We cannot have faith in our faith, because that is not faith at all. We must have faith in God. And if that is truly where our faith is placed, then we already have enough. Because it is not the amount of faith we have – any faith will do – it is our mighty God, in Whom our faith is placed, that makes the difference.

We might even say that a certain person is an amazing pray-er. "His prayers have such great strength and power – we need to have him pray for us." When, in fact, it has nothing to do with the prayer or the one who is whispering it. Rather, it has everything to do with the One listening to, and answering it. Any prayer will do – just take it to God.

We do not hold the key. We do not have the answers. We cannot find any of what we need in anything or anyone here on earth. And until we realize that, we are going to feel lost, incomplete, and disjointed. We must look to God, and Him alone. He alone holds the key. He alone has all the answers. We must get our eyes off our "alters" – all things we consider holy and sacred; our "incense altars" (which represent prayer in the Old Testament) – all that we do in our hope of reaching God; even our Asherah poles – all the stuff that the world throws in our direction hoping to get our attention; and we must turn our eyes to the Holy One of Israel.

That’s it. That’s life. Looking to God is what life is all about. Nothing more. Because when we look to Him, everything else comes into perfect focus – His focus. You want adventure? Look to God. You want peace? Look to God. You want freedom? Look to God. You want wisdom? Patience? Joy? Security? Love? Self-control? Life? Look to God, and Him alone.

Let’s really take time today to think and pray about this. Is there anything that we have elevated too high? It could be a person, a thing, a service or action. Even those things we do as part of our Christian service and duty can get in the way of our looking to God. I couldn’t begin to tell you of all the things that I considered part of my becoming a "better Christian" that ended up turning my attention away from the only One Who could truly make me better.

So, let’s ask God, and listen. He will, no doubt, tell us exactly what we have elevated too high, and will help us to re-focus on Him. Let’s allow Him to lift our chins until our eyes meet His, and we are forever changed.