Staring at Jesus is not Rude - by Elizabeth Reynolds
After my baby girl Beth was born, I suddenly rode everywhere in the back seat of the car instead of the front (unless I was driving of course), so that I could be next to the baby capsule to keep an eye on her. And so she could also keep her eye on me – and that, she certainly did. Up until about 3 or 4 months, while in that capsule seat, if she was awake, she would stare at me – without stopping – hardly even blinking!
I would look down at her adoringly, look out the window, look at my husband driving, do stuff on my phone, look back at her and she would still be staring up at me. Even in the dark, in between passing street lights, I could see her little eyes – still staring.
This gets awkward with older children or grown people when you stare this long. But not for her. Not for Beth. She doesn’t understand that it’s rude to stare (not that it would be terribly rude to stare at your own mother anyway). As an innocent baby, so new to the world, she is above rudeness, awkwardness, socially acceptable behaviour. She stares at her mummy non-stop because I am her world. I’m her everything. She looks to me not only for her food, but also for comfort, reassurance, and for what’s going to happen next. I’m the thing she knows, the thing she is confident in and familiar with.
And one day when I was riding in the back of the car beside Beth watching her staring up at me, it struck me. This is how Jesus wants us to look at him. Staring. Without blinking. It’s not rude. It’s not awkward. It’s a child looking up at its parent with total trust, a feeling of total comfort, confidence and reassurance.
He’s our everything; we rely on Him for everything. And in an ever-changing, highly stressful and confusing world, He is what we know, what we are confident in, and what we can depend on.
“…and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith…” Hebrews 12:1-2
Look unto Jesus with a childlike heart, as a baby looks to its mother and father. He provides your every need and gives you comfort and reassurance because of His great love for us, demonstrated by His sacrifice on the cross. There’s no shame in it. Jesus doesn’t feel awkward when you look at Him. I am filled with joy when my baby is looking at me in that unashamed, unreserved way. It’s one of the most natural things in the world. So how much more would our heavenly Father be filled with joy when we, His children, look to Him – unblinkingly, unashamed, completely trusting.