Look! part 4
Keep your eyes on the prize. Those are words to live by. Very rarely do great things happen by accident. You have to be purposeful. You have to work for what you want. And I'm not talking about salvation in the sense of how we know works and labor don't work in the Spiritual sense. I'm talking about effort. Love is maximum effort. Giving everything you have and everything you are. Laying your life down for your friends. I'm talking about working in the sense of buildling. Seeing what you want--having a goal--and working towards it. And I'm not talking about the grass being greener on the other side, either. Because as we look, and see, and walk... we need to be grateful for where we are. For what we have. I think a big part of what messes us up a lot of the time is that we don't give credit to how far we've come. We're always looking ahead. There has to be a balance where you can see how far you've come, enjoy where you are, and work towards where you're going. And, really, it comes down to seeing love. Looking at things cross-eyed (through the lens of the finished work of the cross). If you can see love everywhere you look... you will be able to not only survive, but thrive, no matter where you are. You'll be able to enjoy the gift of God--which is eternal life--that you've been given. You'll be able to stop trying to be someone you're not and stop trying to get something you think you haven't got. When you see it (Him, Jesus, love) you will be it. When you see where you want to go, you'll be able to get there. And, listen, good things take time. I know we have a snapshot mentality where we think what's happening right now is how things have always been and will always be. I know we have a microwave mentality where we want it hot and ready right now. Life is a journey. It has ups and downs. Ebbs and flows. But it's all in God's timing. Let me say it like this: It all works out in the end. If it hasn't worked out yet, it isn't the end yet. So keep the faith. Look to the Rock from which you were hewn and then stand on that Rock! Stand on love and you cannot be shaken. When Jesus is holding you up--and He is ALWAYS holding you up--nothing can drag you down. Set aside the weight and the sin (unbelief) that so easily besets you. If you know something is a trigger for you, or is likey to try to trip you up, don't even mess with it. You don't have to fight every battle. In fact, the only fight we should be fighting is the good fight of faith. Which is laying hold of eternal life. Receiving and releasing the gift we've been given. So look at where you've been. But don't let it hold you back. Look at where you are, but don't get stuck there. Be content but not satisfied. And look at where you're going. Be purposeful. Don't do things just to do them. Make a plan. Have goals. We only have so much time on this earth. We shouldn't squander it, or waste it. But let me say this: If you enjoy the time you "waste" are you really wasting it? There are more ways to be productive than working yourself to death. Sometimes just being still and knowing HE is God is the most productive you can be. Looking at Him. His glory. His beauty. His mercy. His grace. Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord because he knew where to look. His focus was in the right place. So, like I keep saying (and will keep saying) SET your affection on things above. Keep your eyes on the prize. Look... and live! What you see is what you be. When you see Jesus... you be who you really are. Who you are in Christ. Which is who Christ is in you!