Fix Your Eyes on Jesus (Part 2)

In part one, we saw how we need to look straight ahead to Jesus to live a joyful, free life, but what happens when I look behind me or to the side? 

 

When we look behind us, we are looking at our past.  Maybe you had a great past and are still looking at those glory days, your past achievements and honors received.  Do you see how the concentration of those things is usually on what YOU did and not on what God did?  The focus of life can't be on ourselves if we want to be full of joy and live a fulfilling life.

 

More likely, when you think of your past though, you are thinking about all the things you would do differently if you had the chance to do it all over again.  If you are like most people, you are thinking of your bad decisions, sins, people who have wronged you, and regrets.  I recently heard a quote from Tamara Lowe that said, “Never let the 'where you are' become the 'who you are'."  We can't go back and change it, so don’t let your past or even your present define you as a person.  Don’t let Satan steal your dream, your joy or your influence for God by staying in your past. Don't let him have that power in your life.  The only power he has in your life is what you give him. If you are stuck in your past and allowing those feelings of failure and defeat to rob you of your future, then he wins!  I'm convinced that Satan doesn't care if you read your Bible or go to church, just as long as he can keep you busy or feeling so defeated that you do nothing.

 

The second half of Philippians 3:13 tells us, “Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead.”  Wow, we aren’t to just move forward but we are to strain toward what is ahead. We've got a race to win!  God has a great plan and future for you.  Not just in heaven someday, but here on earth!  His Word is full of the good things he has for us who believe - blessings, victory, days of heaven on earth.  Don't look behind because the best is yet to come!

 

When we look to our sides instead of straight ahead to Jesus, we get distracted. Remember our horse example?  When he looks to his side in a race, he is comparing himself with others, he is losing focus on what is really important (the race), and he gets scared by all the images around him.  This view of life will bring jealousy, overwhelming, anxious and fearful thoughts, feelings of being out of control or insignificance.  Let’s say you are trying to lose weight.  By not fixing your eyes on Jesus, but looking to the side by comparing yourself to others - feeling inadequate, feeling like a failure, feeling condemned - you won’t get even one step closer to your goal.  When you are filled with regret, jealousy and so forth, you will grow weary and lose heart.  Looking to the side in life, we lose our joy and we find ourselves weighed down with the cares of this world. We'll continue to live in defeat and have so many of our own concerns that we don't have time or energy left over to love other people the way God commands us to.

 

There is only one way to look and that is straight ahead.  Fix your eyes straight ahead on Jesus.  It truly is the answer to all the stress, worry and fear in our lives.

 

Next week:

Sounds great, but how do I practically apply this when all the things you are telling me not to look at are screaming for my attention?

 

Sometimes we need some help with how we look at things.  The same way of looking at things that got you into the situation you are in, can't usually get you out.  I invite you to sign up for a FREE 30-minute Stress Buster Strategy Session with me to bring you new ways of thinking that will have you busting your stress and reigning in life.