I grew up in a...
Illustration
I grew up in a rural community in western Iowa. Our church was a little Evangelical
church just a short distance from our farm home. One of the men of the congregation had
made a small wall motto board with this wording on it: "Keep Looking Up." Perhaps that
is the reason why one of my favorite passages in the Old Testament is Psalm 121, which
begins, "I lift my eyes to the hills...." And a favorite passage in the New Testament is,
"So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above ... Set your mind
on things that are above, not on things that are on earth."
Three things about that little church helped me to "Keep Looking Up." First, my parents and a large group of relatives and friends helped with the upward look. (the saints)
Second, a part of the rural atmosphere included a mockingbird that nested and sang from the top of a nearby spruce tree. My father often whistled "Listen To The Mockingbird." (the singing)
Third was an attitude that God was in charge. (spiritual awakening)
Three things about that little church helped me to "Keep Looking Up." First, my parents and a large group of relatives and friends helped with the upward look. (the saints)
Second, a part of the rural atmosphere included a mockingbird that nested and sang from the top of a nearby spruce tree. My father often whistled "Listen To The Mockingbird." (the singing)
Third was an attitude that God was in charge. (spiritual awakening)
