Weekend Words

A theme this week in some of my readings was keeping our eyes on God.  Where is our focus?

From Our Daily Bread...

Spotting God - Read Isaiah 26:3-4

"You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you." - Isaiah 26:3

A pirouette is a graceful spin that's executed by ballerinas and contemporary dancers alike.  As a child, I loved to do pirouettes in my modern dance class, whirling around and around until I was dizzy in the head and fell to the ground.  As I got older, a trick I learned to help me maintain my balance and control was "spotting" - identifying a single point for my eyes to return to each time I made a full circle spin.  Having a single focal point was all I needed to master my pirouette with a graceful finish.

We all face many twists and turns in life.  When we focus on our problems, however, the things we encounter seem unmanageable, leaving us dizzy and heading towards a disastrous fall.  The Bible reminds us that if we keep our minds steadfast, or focused, on God, He'll keep us in "perfect peace" (Isaiah 26:3).  Perfect peace means that no matter how many turns life takes, we can remain calm, assured that God will be with us through our problems and trials.  He's the "Rock eternal" (v.4) - the ultimate "spot" to fix our eyes on - because His promises never change.

May we keep our eyes on Him as we go through each day, going to Him in prayer and studying His promises in the Scriptures.  May we rely on God, our eternal Rock, to helps us move gracefully through all of life. 

- Kimya Loder

From Beside the Still Waters...

Walking in Darkness - Read John 12:35-50, John 3:17-21

"He that walketh in darkness knoweth not wither he goeth." - John 12:35

The cattle feeders were only three hundred yards across a level grass field directly in front of our home, yet I could not see them.  A dense fog and the winter darkness of a predawn morning combined to totally eliminate all visibility.  The calves needed to be fed, however, so I faced directly west and started walking.  But several minutes later, in embarrassment, I concluded that I was lost, literally in my own front yard.  The sloping ground told me that I was now actually heading north.  A right-handed person tends to drift to the right when hiking in unfamiliar territory, and will ultimately travel in a circle, exactly as I was doing.

The spiritual parallel struck me later as I pondered my experience.  Jesus said, "I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life" (John 8:12).  Spiritual light dispels spiritual darkness, yet our society has largely rejected that light.  "Men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.  For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved" (John 3:19-20).

The self-centered path to power, pleasure, prominence, and wealth is well illuminated by another light, a deceptive one, for "Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light" (2 Corinthians 11:14).  His path, however, leads to eternal ruin.

Drift is inevitable whenever we take our focus off the Everlasting Light.  Though I eventually found the feeders, the object lesson continues to help me remember the consequences of walking in spiritual darkness.

Pete Lewis - Halsey, OR

"Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness." - 1 Thessalonians 5:5

Photo credit: Bill Coleman

And this one, which, although not specifically mentioning keeping our focus on God, it highlights the troubles and trials we can bring to ourselves when we concern ourselves with things we should not.  When we should be 'looking to Jesus...' 

From Behold the Lilies...

"Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you." - 2 Chronicles 20:17

Did you ever bring needless stress upon yourself because of your curiosity?  Perhaps several people held a conference to discuss some matter and you were not included.  You would have liked to know what was said.  Or perhaps you know a pleasant surprise awaits you, but you do not know what it is or when it will be.  Your curiosity does not allow you to focus on anything else.  In these cases, you think you must know and you must have answers.  But you really don't.  These matters are under control, and you will find out when you need to know when the time is right for you to know.  In the past, things turned out right, did they not?

Do you struggle needlessly because you think you must have answers when the devil challenges you?  He might ask, "Why did the Lord put you in this place?  There is not much opportunity to do anything for him in your position."  Or, "Why doesn't the Lord give you what He does others?"  Or, "Why does God ask this of you if He does not ask it of others?"  Panic-stricken, you grope for an answer, something concrete to cling to.  You think you have to have answers because Satan's challenges keep you from thinking about any thing else.  But you do not have to have an answer.  Ask God to fight for you, and have faith that He will take care of each of your questions.  You will see His answers when the time is right for you to know.  You can rest in His care.