"...I focus on this one thing...looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Jesus Christ, is calling us." Philippians 3:13-14 (NLT)
I am loving Fall, aren't you?? Aaahhh, the cool breezes, the change in the angle of the sun...and the hues that produces, the crackle of leaves underfoot...and the incredible colors in the trees, the rustle and chattering of squirrels gathering acorns, and that smell...that Fall smell. Aaahh.
I was out for a walk this week, around the lake of Meredith College, enjoying an amazing Autumn day...and getting some much needed exercise. I hadn't been walking long when I realized that my focus was all downward. I was having to concentrate on the ground to avoid the goose poopy. There I was in an amazing setting on a beautiful day, and missing it because of the poopy.
I stopped and just looked around me. Then I looked up. I could almost hear God speaking and saying, "You do that sometimes." I said, "What?" He said, "Get bogged down in your circumstances and forget to look up. You miss the beauty....the glory. You lose the vision of the hope to which I have called you...to the glorious inheritance awaiting you." I said, "Do you see all this poopy around me? How can I keep looking up?" He said, "Trust me....'walk by faith, not by sight.'" 2 Corinthians 5:7 (NASB) I said, "Sometimes I can't." He responded, "I know, but I can. I am 'the lifter of [your] head.'" Psalm 3:3 (KJV)
Yes, I continued to "watch my step" until I got out of the "poopy zone," slowing my pace so that I could also look up to the magnolia and sycamore trees and the deep blue sky, refusing to let what surrounded my feet be my focus.
Do you find yourself buried deep in the circumstances of life and forget to "look up" at the goodness of God? Do you find yourself saying, "I can't?" If you know the great I AM, you can!
Oh Lord, the author, perfecter, and finisher of our faith, lift our heads and our eyes to see Your power, Your presence, and Your glory among us. Help us to "trust Your heart even when we can't see Your hand." Thank You for Your love that knows no bounds, and Your faithfulness to a thousand generations (Deuteronomy 7:9), including our very own. You are great and greatly to be praised!
1 comment:
Ohhh...I can relate to this post so much! Getting caught up in the "poopy" of life is an easy thing to do. We are in the midst of it sometimes, ya know? It's messy. It's smelly. It's NOT where we want to be. So why do we focus on it? You are absolutely correct...it's because we are, during those "poopy" moments, walking in the flesh rather than walking in HIM. Thanks for the reminder that I need to walk BY faith NOT by sight! :)
peace,
Donna
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