“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye” (Psalm 32:8). In reflecting on this wonderful, precious promise, I wondered about the mechanism God uses to fulfill it.

My first thought was that God does not shine a light out of His eye like a cartoon character or a superhero action figure. We are not to be focused intently on the path waiting for a beam of light to come from heaven to guide us. True, God’s word is a flashlight that we should use to navigate dark pathways (Psalm 119:105), but that is different from what is promised in today’s text. Here we are promised that God will guide us with His eye. And if not as a flashlight beam, then how?

The answer is, “By looking unto Him.” You have probably had a conversation with someone and noticed that their attention was focused on something else. You follow their gaze to see what they are looking at. This is how it is that God guides us with His eye. As we look at Him, we can see what He is looking at and follow His gaze.

It is by looking into the face of God that His children are reassured as to the path that they should take. But since God is in Heaven, how do we know what He is looking at? By looking at Jesus, as the book of Hebrews admonishes. “Consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus,” looking unto Him, “the author and finisher of our faith” (Hebrews 3:1, 12:2). It is by spending time with Him in His word, in prayer, and in cooperation with Him in His mission that we are guided by His eye.

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