As much as possible, look up, not down; look forward, not back; look after others, not just yourself.
It’s very difficult to see into heaven when you’re always looking down. Job and his friends spend a fair bit of time looking down, don’t they! So forgive a brief diversion. One of the repeated calls to the believer is to lift up our eyes. Abraham was instructed to lift up his eyes to see the heritage God was giving him: “Lift your eyes now and look from the place where you are—northward, southward, eastward, and westward; for all the land which you see I give to you and your descendants forever” (Gen 13:14-15). How often with downcast eyes we miss the blessings we’re surrounded with. We also benefit from lifting up our eyes to the heavens to be reminded of “the greatness of His might and the strength of His power” (see Isa 40:26-28). The psalmist encourages us to lift up our eyes to the hills: “I will lift up my eyes to the hills— from whence comes my help? My help comes from the Lord” (Ps 121:1-2). No need to insert the question mark. This is a Song of Ascents. Any ideas what hills they were? Zion, of course, and Moriah, and Olivet—where the Lord came to help us the first time, and where He’ll come again! Another Song of Ascents tells us to lift up our eyes to the hand of our Master: “Unto You I lift up my eyes, O You who dwell in the heavens. Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their masters, as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the Lord our God” (Ps 123:1-2). The word nâśâ’, here rendered “lift up,” may also be translated by the word “marry.” Marry your eyes to the Master. Watch His every move. Don’t let anything distract you from doing what pleases Him. Finally, our Savior pleads, lift up your eyes to see the harvest, ripe and ready (Jn 4:35). Nothing like looking up to cheer us up!