North Central District 

The Uplifted Look

I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. Ps. 121:1

From the altar window of the little Chapel of the Transfiguration in western Wyoming I see, as I lift my eyes, the three towering snow covered peaks of the mighty Tetons.  The day was gloomy when I paused in the chapel.  But those great mountains spoke of stability, peace, and eternity.

You young men and women who may read these lines are going through many trying experiences even as I did in the First World War.  To see you through them you need to cultivate the "uplifted look."  You must retain in your own soul those crystal clear moments which reveal, amid chaos, the stability, the peace, the love, and the mercy of the Eternal God, out of which will come for you courage, faith, and hope.

During the bloody Meuse-Argonne battle a comrade said to me with conviction, "This puts the fear of God in a fellow."  In the midst of shot and shell he had sensed a window open towards God and utilized the "uplifted look."  Such an experience may come to some of you.  Yet if you desire, you may have the experience often.  Visions of God come more frequently as you commune with Him through meditation, through reading His Word, through prayer, through the fellowship of worship.  By these means the "uplifted look" may be a daily experience.

DEAR GOD IN HEAVEN, I thank Thee that Thou hast smiled upon us, that Thou hast taken our hands in Thine to lead us over life's way.  I know that with this faith in my heart, all things do somehow work together for good to them that love Thee.  Lead me and all my comrades to those high moments where we shall see Thee in all Thine infinite compassion waiting to bless us with faith and courage to find our way through these troublous days. Amen.