I vividly recall learning to drive with my father. My grip on the steering wheel was tight, knuckles white, and my focus was intensely fixed on the road directly in front of the car. I was hyper-focused on those white lines, desperately trying to keep the car perfectly centered in the lane. Sensing my tension, my Dad advised, “Don’t just look at the road right in front of you. Lift your eyes and look further ahead.” The moment I shifted my gaze upwards and broadened my perspective, driving became instantly smoother. I could still see the lane lines and maintain my position, but now I was also aware of everything happening around me with ease.
This memory isn’t shared to suggest that simply looking ‘up and out’ will solve all of life’s problems – life, as we know, isn’t that simple. However, there’s a profound truth in the message of the hymn ‘Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus.’ This timeless song suggests that when we lift our spiritual eyes to Jesus, the worries and burdens of earthly life begin to lose their intensity, they “grow dim.” These ‘things’ that weigh us down are personal to each of us. Perhaps it’s daily stress, persistent worry, overwhelming busyness, feelings of loneliness, gnawing boredom, constant distractions, deep discouragement, or even despair. Whatever these burdens may be, they diminish in their power over us as we intentionally turn our gaze toward Jesus. It’s in this spiritual redirection that we can find a sense of peace, a kind of inner joy that might even be seen as a Song In Your Eyes.
The hymn ‘Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus’ was penned in 1918 by Helen Lemmel. Throughout her remarkable ninety-eight years, she gifted the world with over five hundred hymns, poems, and even a children’s book. The seed for this particular song was sown when Helen encountered a tract containing the powerful words: “So then turn your eyes upon Him, look full into His face and you will find the things of earth will acquire a strange new dimness.” This phrase resonated deeply within her, blossoming into the chorus we know and love. The chorus serves as a beautiful and constant reminder: as we fix our gaze on Jesus, as we meditate on His nature and sacrifice, as we recognize our identity through Him, the concerns of this world genuinely fade in significance. This shift in perspective allows a different kind of light to shine – a light that can bring a song in your eyes, a reflection of inner peace and hope.
My sincere hope is that the lyrics of this hymn will resonate with you, prompting you to turn your eyes towards Jesus. And as you do, may you find that the overwhelming ‘things of earth’ lose their grip on you, becoming strangely dim in the radiant light of His glory and grace. May that light bring a song in your eyes, a testament to the peace found in faith.
O soul, are you weary and troubled? No light in the darkness you see? There’s a light for a look at the Saviour, And a life more abundant and free!
His Word shall not fail you – He promised; Believe Him, and all will be well: Then go to a world that is dying, His perfect salvation to tell!
Turn your eyes upon Jesus, Look full in His wonderful face, And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, In the light of His glory and grace.
Looking to Him,
Emma
