“Let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from beginning to end. He did not give up because of the cross! On the contrary, because of the joy that was waiting for him, he thought nothing of the disgrace of dying on the cross, and he is now seated at the right side of God’s throne.”   (Hebrews 12:2 TEV)

Most of us try to live with one eye on Jesus and one eye on the world. The only thing that does is give us double vision.

Following Jesus down the narrow path and through the narrow gate into the Kingdom of Heaven with double vision is more difficult than a drunk trying to stay steady and straight while touching his nose or walking heel-to-toe down the line.

I’ve had double vision ever since junior high, when a linebacker swept his forearm through the ball, unintentionally using his elbow like a pile driver, smashing through my glasses and driving them into the bottom ridge of my right eye socket. The muscle under my right eye was permanently weakened, so it tilts up ever so slightly, just enough to keep my eyes from lining up together in coordinated vision.

You can imagine how disorienting life can be when there’s always a double-image of the things you see. Imagine driving. Imagine trying to pour yourself a glass of tea. It can drive you crazy, not to mention give you a huge, daylong headache.

This is how so many of us try to follow Jesus. We keep one eye on the world and the other on the Kingdom — and that skews everything we see. Our focus is constantly shifting from one image to the other. We stumble along, trying to walk a straight line but instead staggering between what is right and what we think is right. And we call this normal; we call this discipleship.

We were never meant to walk with double vision, and seeing double doesn’t give you a double-focus because — this I know well — you can’t focus on anything when you’re seeing more than one image. By its very nature, double vision is unfocused.

Eventually, double vision corrects itself because your brain chooses one eye over the other — the damaged one. When we aren’t intentional on seeing the whole of reality through the eyes of Jesus, we most likely will default into a damaged view of the world.

When Jesus gives us his eyes, he shows us how citizens of the Kingdom are able to see. He adjusts our vision so that we can see the whole of reality. We can see the Kingdom truth that all things come from Jesus, go through Jesus, and come back to Jesus (Romans 11:36).

Seeing Kingdom reality while living in this world is not about alternating between two pairs of glasses as your circumstances change. It’s more like wearing bifocals. I wear bifocals because my lens correct so I can see far — into eternity. The bifocal allows me to see what is up close while still looking through the larger lens — the Jesus lens. I don’t have one eye on the world and one eye on the Kingdom. I have both eyes “fixed on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from beginning to end” (Hebrews 12:2 TEV).

Talk About It

• How do you see differently when you intentionally see the people and circumstances around you through the Jesus lens?

• What circumstances have you made a conscious choice to view through the world’s perspective?

by Jon Walker
Used by permission.

This devotional © Copyright 2013 Jon Walker. All rights reserved.

FURTHER READING

Eyes on Jesus

Keep Your Eyes on Jesus

Focus on God’s Majesty

The post The Jesus Lens appeared first on Thoughts About God.

“My son, pay attention to what I say; turn your ear to my words.” Proverbs 4:20

We are bombarded with so many distractions every day. It takes a conscious effort on our part to remain focused and do the things in life that are truly needed.

Think of the story of Martha receiving Jesus into her home. Her sister Mary sat at the feet of Jesus, paying attention to Him and taking in every word. But Martha was busy in the kitchen, preparing everything so it was perfect for her guests. Naturally, she became frustrated with her sister, who wasn’t doing anything to help out:

“[Martha] came to [Jesus] and asked, ‘Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!’

‘Martha, Martha,’ the Lord answered, ‘you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed — or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her’” (Luke 10:38).

Like Martha, we tend to be worried and distracted, giving attention to the challenges around us instead of the Word of God. But the only thing that’s needed is to be like Mary, to sit at the feet of Jesus, soaking in His presence and His Word.

Are you giving attention to the Word? Are you hearing from Him? Or have you allowed the distractions of the world keep you from listening to Jesus? Instead of fixating on life’s challenges, meditate on the Word so that you can hear from Him.

Lord, give me the wisdom to deal with the distractions in my life that are keeping me from attending to Your Word. Amen.

By Folasade Oladapo
used by permission

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Spiritual Distractions

How Distractions May Lead Us to a Slow Fade

When Silence is More Than Being Quiet

The post Only One Thing is Needed appeared first on Thoughts About God.

The past two years I have been slowly entering the world of cycling. I just purchased a proper road bike this year. (My last one was saved from recycling.) I enjoy the outdoors and am starting to appreciate the healthy workout that cycling provides. I ride in an area that has a good mix of flats and hills. I really like the thrill of the long downhill grades. The long uphill grades, not so much!

Along the way I have been learning some cycling techniques. One is focus.  In the difficult uphill sections I have found if I focus on the long road ahead to the crest of the hill, I get overwhelmed and want to quit. But if instead I focus on just the next few meters of road ahead of me, I’m more successful and able to conquer the hard road ahead. The key seems to be where I place my focus, the next few meters or the long road ahead. The physics does not change, but just focusing on getting through the next few meters makes a world of difference.

In life, like cycling I like the “long downhill grades” where I just sail along. I attempt to avoid the hard uphill stretches, if possible, but they always seem to find their way into the road ahead even with the best planning on my part.

Jesus has some words of encouragement about focusing on the road just ahead in these moments…

“Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.”  
Matthew 6:34 (The Message)

by Mike Woodard
Used by Permission

FURTHER READING

Focus |  by Roy Lessin

Where is Your Focus?

Take Goliath Down – by Max Lucado

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The post A Hard Road Ahead? appeared first on Thoughts About God.

“Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5:18 (NLT)

Today, instead of looking at what’s going wrong in your life, find the good. Having a  grateful attitude can turn your lives around. What are you grateful for?

Lord, teach us to focus more on the great things you are doing in our lives and not just the things that are going wrong. There is so much that You are doing in our lives that are good. Help us to see the good and be grateful. In Jesus name, Amen

Grace and Peace,

By Mary Pinckney
used by permission

The post It’s All about Your Focus appeared first on Thoughts About God.