Look Up, Calm Down

“After this time had passed, I, Nebuchadnezzar, looked up to heaven. My sanity returned, and I praised and worshiped the Most High and honored the one who lives forever. His rule is everlasting, and his kingdom is eternal.” (Daniel 4:34)

I listened intently as the best-selling author explained how to help our children calm down when in an emotional crisis. It is epidemic in proportion. Anger, anxiety and fear overcome our students as they face the unimaginable.

“Look up,” she said.

The auditorium was packed with over 200 educators carefully listening to the science behind the strategy. It’s simply a matter of changing focus. When you look up, your mind shifts from emotional chaos to a quiet calm.

Most of us were silently wondering, would this work for me? Would merely looking up calm my anxious, angry and fearful soul? It is no coincidence that looking up is the solution. We were created to look up.

So why don’t we?

In the passage from Daniel, Nebuchadnezzar is honoring and praising the Most High for the return to his right mind. Nebuchadnezzar’s dream and his journey to faith in God, highlights three things that get in the way of turning our attention heavenward. Panic, power and pride.

Panic

I can hear the panic in Nebuchadnezzar’s voice when he says, “Just tell me the dream and what it means!” When he didn’t get what he wanted, when he wanted, he lost it. Instead of trusting the One True God, he panicked. If we are not looking to God, we are looking away from Him.

Power

Nebuchadnezzar was a powerful warrior and king. He knew the God of Daniel was in control, but it made no difference in his choices. Nebuchadnezzar sought power over God.

Sometimes, I forget who is in control – queen over my own little kingdom. If circumstances aren’t going in the right direction, I take charge, make it happen. The result is always the same. I work myself until I am exhausted, cranky and a little crazy. How different the outcome would be if only I gave up control and trusted the One who has power over everything!

Pride

Nebuchadnezzar praised God, but his pride kept him from peace with God. We may stand in worship, pray alongside other believers and claim his glory, but until we walk humbly with the Most High, and raise our eyes toward heaven, we will not experience the grace and goodness he provides.

I can’t count the times I’ve looked up to God to calm my craziness, then turned away. Like Nebuchadnezzar, it took me a lot of years to set aside my pride and give him my heart. Sometimes, I still think I can figure it all out on my own.

Thankfully, God is able to quiet our fears and humble our prideful heart. When life’s circumstances are more than you can handle, look up. Calm down, give him control, and make him Lord over all.