Fixing my Eyes on Jesus

 

It might not be the only time when bothersome distracting thoughts come into our heads, but scrolling through social media mindlessly is a surefire way to pick up some junky thoughts that have no value,  and then be sorry for it.

Then what? This, maybe? "Hey, I can't get my mind off of this stupid thought!!"

Yes, there are times when an unwelcomed ugly thought gets in our heads and we want to remove it, but we can't. When this happens, it quite often starts to really annoy us when we are settling down at the end of the day, likely when we just got into bed. But of course, it could be anytime, alas!

What we need to do is replace it with a welcomed thought. But how?

We need help from Someone who is powerful enough to get the job done!
Here is Someone who is powerful enough!

In Jeremiah 32 verse 17 it is written:
Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for You!

And we need Someone who is very willing to save us!

And here is Someone who is very willing to save us!

In Psalm 118 verses 6&7 it is written:
6. The LORD is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me?
7. The LORD is for me among those who helped me; ...

So, Father/Jesus/Holy Spirit/God Almighty! is the Someone we need! Really!

OK this is key. This is what we need to do!

In Hebrews 12 verse 2 it is written:

Looking to (or unto) Jesus... (ESV, NKJV, NASB)

-or-

Fixing our eyes on Jesus... (NIV)

This is how the NIV version puts it. This way sounds, to me, like we're locking our eyes on Jesus. I appreciate the way this is stated here.

But how do we do that? How do we fix our eyes on Jesus?

In Psalm 34 verse 1 it is written:
I will bless the Lord at all times. His praise shall continually be in my mouth.

In Philippians 4 verse 4 it is written:
Rejoice in the Lord always!

Both "continually" and "always" include "right now"! So, His praise shall be in my mouth right now! And I will rejoice in the Lord right now!

There's an old song written by Helen H. Lemmel in 1922 that captures this idea very well. It goes like this:

Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace.

And finally, in Psalm 27 verse 14 it is written:
Wait on the Lord; Be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord!

So, look full in His wonderful face, and wait! There is no other way.
Oh, I agree. Before the problem happens is always much better than after the problem happens!

Yes, I need to practice what I preach!

Larry Carroll

Sorrow

Sorrow

In 2 Corinthians 7:10, it is written:

For godly sorrow produces repentance, leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death. (NKJV)

Peter is an example of one having godly sorrow which produces repentance leading to salvation.

Judas is an example of one experiencing the sorrow of the world which (lacks repentance and) produces death.

So?

We all experience messing up, a.k.a. sinning. Really. So what do you do now? Well, you’re gonna do either what Peter or Judas did! Oh, you haven’t experienced this yet? Well, good for you, but life isn’t over yet, is it?

Godly sorrow which produces repentance leads us back to the Lord Jesus, to Father God, to Holy Spirit. This is really important!

When did Peter go back to the Lord Jesus? When a few of the disciples were fishing on the Sea of Galilee, and when John told Peter that the man on the shore was the Lord Jesus, Peter jumped off of the boat and swam to the shore. And after breakfast, Peter and Jesus had a private conversation! Then Peter experienced forgiveness! (John chapter 21)

Worldly sorrow leads to hopelessness which leads to giving up.

We know Judas was remorseful or sorrowful when he went back to the temple and threw down his 30 pieces of silver. Then he committed suicide. Jesus said it would have been better for Judas if he had never been born.

So when you sin (mess up) and you’re sorry for it, repent and return to Father God, just as the prodigal son returned to his father.  Father God will receive you! (Luke chapter 15). This is really important!

Larry Carroll