Lately, I have been thinking about the word "focus." God's Word has a lot to say about it. For example, Col. 3:2 admonishes us to "Set your mind on the things above, not on the things on the earth." That's definitely being intentional in our focus!
The Lord is teaching me personally that to have a focus like this, it is something I must choose and in which I must be trained. To me, it would be so much easier if God would just take the 2 "D's" that come into my life away so my perspective could be easily maintained. What are the 2 "D's" you might ask? Distractions and devastations. I like to categorize things and it seems the hinderances that lure me away from where my mind needs to stay, which is on Christ, nearly always comes in the form of the 2 "D's."
The Lord is teaching me personally that to have a focus like this, it is something I must choose and in which I must be trained. To me, it would be so much easier if God would just take the 2 "D's" that come into my life away so my perspective could be easily maintained. What are the 2 "D's" you might ask? Distractions and devastations. I like to categorize things and it seems the hinderances that lure me away from where my mind needs to stay, which is on Christ, nearly always comes in the form of the 2 "D's."
I was having my quiet time this morning and was called to answer a knock at my door. It was a short interruption, but as I returned to my room, I found myself wanting to blame someone else for not answering the door. Didn't they know what I was doing was important? Weren't they closer to the door anyway? I realized this tiny little distraction was going to harness my thoughts and begin to run wild with them if I didn't just ignore it and place my focus back on my time alone with God.
Sometimes the things that steal my perspective are as simple as that. Other times they are much more intense involving extreme issues to deal with. This past summer was such a time for me. As our family tragically lost my father-in-law and also my mother-in-law 18 days later, I felt the winds of devastation storming through my life. Unanswered questions, doubts, and fears begged for my time and attention, making my focus on God all the more difficult, yet crucial.
I had to choose whether or not I would let my anxious thoughts drive me away from God or to Him; whether or not I would stay focused on my circumstances or turn my eyes back to the Lord. Trust me when I say I have lived a good portion of my life handling my circumstances on my own and the outcome has not been desirable. I definitely didn't want to go back "there" again so I was desperate to run to Jesus and pour out all of my feelings and fears to Him. The result: In His timing, He delivered me out of the dark place I was in and He set my feet back on steady ground. It wasn't easy and it didn't happen overnight, but He did calm and heal my anxious heart. To Him be the glory!!! I realize now it was all part of His training as He wants to teach me to continuously to refocus and look to Him.
I heard a story a while back that really reenforced to me our need to be trained to keep our eyes on The Lord: Two men were placed in a flight simulator that would give each of them the same type of experience one might face in flying an air force jet while in combat. As they occupied their compartment, each man was whirled around upside down, creating a dizzying effect that would effect most anyone. However, when the motion had ceased and each man exited their simulator, two totally opposite reactions resulted. One man walked out of the simulator composed and calm; the other was dizzy, sick, and had lost his grounding. What produced the difference? The calm, composed man was an air craft pilot trained for his profession. The other man was an ordinary civilian that had been chosen to demonstrate an interesting concept. How had his counterpart been trained to enable himself to keep his equilibrium? What did he know that his poor, unsteady partner didn't? The professional aircraft pilot had been instructed as his jet went into motion, to focus his eyes on one designated spot and keep them there during the entire test. The other man didn't know the value of such a discipline. I imagine he felt just about as out of control as his surroundings actually were.
What an analogy for me! In my times of menial distractions and in my times of devastation when my world appears to be turning upside down around me, Jesus is to be my one constant focal point. For I am learning He is not just the calm after the storm; He is my Calm in the storm. He's not just the light at the end of the tunnel; He's my Light in the tunnel. And He's not just the One I will see when I get to heaven; He is the One I am to set my eyes upon now!
"Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." Hebrews 12:2
Mary
