Sunday Sermonettes #100
“Keep me as the apple of your eye.” It is a simple prayer, asking God for his special attention and protection.
The pupil is a very sensitive part of the eye. If something suddenly flies toward it, we instinctively shield it with our hands.
It is one of the most delicate parts of the body. This prayer is asking God to guard you with that same instinctive care, knowing how easily we can be hurt by the sudden changes and unexpected troubles of life.
God uses this same picture elsewhere when he says that whoever touches his people touches the apple of his eye.
It means that God is watching over you. He neither slumbers nor sleeps. He who sees even a sparrow and knows every detail of its life is watching over yours.
Does that shield you from all trouble? It does not.
But it does mean that God is not passively standing by while you suffer.
He is near to sustain, strengthen, and help you. Sometimes you feel forsaken by God. Yes, there are painful moments in life when we question him.
Especially when God’s promised deliverance is delayed even after much prayer and expectation.
At such times, God wants you to remember that you have great worth in his eyes. You are like the apple of his eye.
When you are facing battles in your mind, when people treat you unfairly, or when life wounds you in ways you cannot explain, God looks upon you with protective care, as if his own pupil has been touched.
You are valued beyond your performance, your success, or anything you accomplish in life. Your worth rests in your identity as a child of God washed by the blood of Jesus.
So make this your prayer today: “Keep me as the apple of your eye.”
You are the apple of his eye. You are always within his loving gaze and his watchful care.
Bible References:
Psalm 17:8 — A prayer of David asking God to protect him from those seeking to harm him. Deuteronomy 32:10 — In the Song of Moses, God is pictured as finding, caring for, and guarding his people during their journey through the wilderness. Zechariah 2:8 — God says that whoever harms his people touches the apple of his eye, showing how precious they are to him. Matthew 10:29 & Luke 12:6 — Jesus reminds us that not even a sparrow, sometimes given free of cost, is forgotten by God. If he cares for the sparrows, how much more does he care for you. Psalm 121:3–4 — God is always watching over his chidlren. He neither slumbers nor sleeps. John 1:12 — Your identity as God’s child. 1 Corinthians 6:11 and 1 John 1:7 — Washed and cleansed by the blood of Jesus.
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