“I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; From where shall my help come?” (Psalm 121.1)
In times like today, we need to lift our eyes to God, that is, we really need to focus upon our God.
But sometimes, all we can see are the mountains. When I was in first grade, we lived in Japan. Every day when I walked to school, I would lift up my eyes and see Mt. Fuji in the distance. This view filled me with the wonder of its beauty. In our text the psalmist lifted up his eyes to the mountains as he was making his way in a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. He knew something about the mountains: they hid possible robbers and other dangers. So, there was fear. A fear of being robbed and/or killed. As a result, he made his pilgrimage with a sense of anxiety in his heart.
Is it not easy to focus upon the mountains, the problems and the things of this world and to forget God? We look at our trials, they seem so big, and God seems so small. We look at the unrighteous and see how they prosper and get away with their sin. We look at major calamities, and the world seems to be so out of control.
When we focus upon the mountains, we lose heart. Like the psalmist, our hearts tremble to see such big mountains and we cry out: “Where is my help?” “Where can I find protection and provision?” The word “help” is the Hebrew word “ezen”. It reminds me of Samuel after the Israelites defeated the Philistines,
Then Samuel took a stone, and set it between Mizpeh and Shen, and called the name of it Ebenezer, saying, Hitherto hath the LORD helped us. (1 Samuel 7:12)
“Ebenezer”, Stone of help. Samuel remembered that God was the one who was his help in the battle and the One he trusted.
Have you ever asked, “God where are you now? Where is my Helper?” Or what do you do when a problem comes, or when it comes and won’t go away? Do you panic, worry, deny, attack others, feel abandoned, blame God or question God? Or do you, in simple faith, focus upon the God who is greater than your mountains?
Listen to Jeremiah,
Truly in vain is salvation hoped for from the hills, and from the multitude of mountains: truly in the LORD our God is the salvation of Israel. (Je 3:23)
– Pastor Stevens