Looking Down
One day as a young teenager, I was walking through our wooded yard when I whacked my head on a tree branch. My dad laughed and said, “Look up, silly.”
I used to always walk with my head down, partly because I was shy and partly because I was always afraid of tripping. Sound familiar? We’ve all been there—shoulders hunched, eyes fixed on the ground, missing the world around us, experiencing the inevitable whack on the head.
When we think of those whose heads are down, we picture the fearful tiptoeing through life, the enslaved dragging heavy chains, the imprisoned staring at cell walls, the discouraged carrying invisible weights, the grieving bent under sorrow, and the hopeless who’ve forgotten how to dream.
God as the Lifter of Our Heads
We used to sing this old worship song: “Thou, O Lord, art a shield about me. You’re my glory and the lifter of my head…” It’s based on Psalm 3, and every time we sang it, I could feel something shift in my spirit.
“O Lord, how many are my foes! Many are rising against me; many are saying of my soul, ‘There is no salvation for him in God.’ But you, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head. I cried aloud to the Lord, and he answered me from his holy hill.” (Psalm 3:1-4, ESV)
Picture this: David, the giant-slayer, the man after God’s own heart, is now elderly and heartbroken. His own son Absalom is staging a coup, trying to steal the throne. People are whispering that even God has abandoned David. Talk about a rock-bottom moment.
But notice what David calls God: his shield and his glory. A shield doesn’t just protect—it’s actively deflecting attacks. God isn’t passively watching David’s struggles; He’s actively intercepting every blow. And as David’s glory, God is his honor, his reputation, his very identity when everything else is stripped away.
When David cries out, God doesn’t just hear him—He lifts his head. This isn’t a gentle nudge to cheer up. It’s a divine hand under the chin, raising eyes that have been fixed on circumstances to see the God who reigns above them all.
Don’t Miss What God Has Already Done by Looking Down
I always love the story of the women going to the tomb to anoint Jesus’ body. Picture them in the pre-dawn darkness, hearts heavy with grief, carrying spices for a dead man. They’re walking toward what they think is the end of the story.
On the way, they’re having the most practical conversation: “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” It’s enormous! It probably took several men to move it. But here’s what I love: they don’t turn around and give up. They keep walking. Maybe they thought the Roman guards would help them. Maybe they just knew they needed to honor their Lord, impossibility or not.
“And they were saying to one another, ‘Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?’ And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back—it was very large.” (Mark 16:3-5, ESV)
Looking up. Two words that changed everything. What if they had given up before they got there? What if they never looked up and saw that the stone was already rolled away?
It makes me wonder: what have we missed because our heads are down? What victories has God already won while we’re still strategizing about obstacles? What stones has He already rolled away while we’re still figuring out how to move them?
Ways God Lifts Our Heads
From Shame to Identity
Sin and failure have been part of the human story since Genesis. But here’s the cruel twist: even worse than the guilt is the shame that Satan and our own thoughts pile on top. We carry pain we were never meant to bear, walking through life like convicted criminals.
But God doesn’t want us carrying the weight of our sin. He provided salvation through Jesus’ death and resurrection, not just forgiveness, but a complete identity makeover. When we look up and choose Him, He offers new life, forgiveness, and most importantly, an identity as His child, His friend, His follower.
Here’s the miracle: when God looks at us, He sees Jesus’ perfection. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” (2 Corinthians 5:17, ESV)
God lifts our heads out of guilt and shame and gives us His name, adopting us into His family. But notice—He doesn’t lift our heads in pride and arrogance. He lifts them in humility, because we’re raising our eyes to behold Him and His glory. Our hearts fill with joy and gratitude as we realize we’re part of His family now.
From Fear to Faith
Fear is faith’s kryptonite. You can’t walk by faith and fear at the same time. Fear might stem from insecurities about ourselves, anxiety about the unknown future, threats from others, or even the constant doom-and-gloom rhetoric we feed our minds through media.
But here’s the antidote: if our faith is in God, and we look to Him instead of focusing on our circumstances and the “what ifs” of life, we find our heads lifted in peace and assurance. We can trust His sovereignty, His ways, His plans, and His goodness. God becomes our shield again, actively protecting us from the arrows of anxiety.
“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9, ESV)
From Discouragement to Hope
Life is hard. Full stop. We can be disillusioned, discouraged, and defeated by what we see happening around us. Parenting can feel impossible. Bills can be overwhelming. Adulting in general can feel like drowning in slow motion.
But here’s where we find victory: when we look up from all of that to our God. We hold onto His promises and His provision. In Christ, we find hope and strength even in our weakest moments. He promises to always be with us, and we put our hope in Him alone.
“But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” (Isaiah 40:31, NIV)
From Slavery to Freedom
God breaks chains. That’s what He does. We might be enslaved by sin, addiction, worry, fear, or any of the things we’ve been talking about. But God’s ultimate goal is our freedom and a renewed relationship with Him.
He wants to lift our heads in victory over whatever threatens to entrap us and hinder us from following Him. The writer of Hebrews says to “throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus.” (Hebrews 12:1-2, NIV)
Notice that? We can’t run well without looking up, seeing where God is leading us to go.
From Unknown to Known
God often lifts His people’s heads when He’s sharing His plan with them. Scripture is full of these “look up” moments:
- Daniel lifted his eyes as God gave him visions of the future
- Abraham was told to look up and count the stars as God shared His covenant promise
- Abraham also looked up to see God’s provision of the ram in the thicket instead of sacrificing his son
- Even Job, who couldn’t lift his head because of sorrow and pain, later lifted his eyes to the light of God when his life was redeemed
“And he brought him outside and said, ‘Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.’ Then he said to him, ‘So shall your offspring be.'” (Genesis 15:5, ESV)
The Victory Walk
We need God to lift our heads—to break the shame, fear, discouragement, or whatever else is causing us to look down. We might be staring at our circumstances instead of looking up in faith to our God who is sovereign and able.
As followers of Christ, we’re meant to walk with our heads lifted, our eyes turned toward Christ, and our hearts uplifted to His ways and His plans. We’re not defeated, no matter what our enemy or circumstances say. We are overcomers through Christ our Lord and Savior.
God is our shield—actively protecting us from every attack. He is our glory—our honor, our identity, our very reputation when everything else fails. And He is the lifter of our heads—the One who raises our eyes from our problems to His power.
Let’s look up and walk in the victory of Christ.
For Parents: Is Your Child’s Head Down?
Does your child seem discouraged and defeated? Here’s what you can do:
Share Psalm 3 and Mark 16 with them. Ask them what they think causes people to feel defeated and what helps us look up in life. Listen to their answers—really listen. Then pray with them, asking God to give them victory, joy, and peace.
Remember, even though they’re young, the enemy doesn’t care about their age. Children can carry feelings of responsibility for things they never should. They might blame themselves for problems they see around them, feel guilty about something they’ve done, or be keeping secrets about bullies or hurtful situations.
We need to create safe spaces for confession and restoration. We need to build openness and trust early in their lives. Help them understand that they can always talk about anything with us. Getting secrets out in the open cripples the enemy’s plan and brings healing to hearts and minds.
We can help our children find victory in Jesus. Help them recognize they too are overcomers through Christ. Memorize verses that give them strength and peace. Sing songs like “Victory in Jesus” or Mandisa’s “Overcomer.” Live out Philippians 4:8 in our homes, and our children will follow our example.
“To you I lift up my eyes, O you who are enthroned in the heavens! Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a maidservant to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the Lord our God, till he has mercy upon us.” (Psalm 123:1-2, ESV)