IN TIMES LIKE THESE - Walk by Faith!
The word for today is faith, and the verse the Holy Spirit put on my heart is "For we walk by faith, not by sight." 2 Corinthians 5:7
Before we talk about faith, I want to share a personal story and illustration of something I learned many years ago. Back in 1970, when I began to drive, I learned that if I wanted to go straight-ahead, I could not look at that yellow line in the middle of the road on my left or my right. I found out quickly that if I kept looking at that dividing line to stay between the lines on the road, I would always veer towards that line. And could not drive straight. Did that happen to you?
Faith is a lot like that. To walk by faith, we have to look forward and not look to the left or to the right. Except to enjoy the "scenery" in our walk with God or to see some potential hazards up ahead. Right?
In Hebrews 12:1-3 says:
"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before Him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart."
To walk by faith, we must:
- Fix our eyes on Jesus Christ.
- Fix our hearts on the love of our Heavenly Father.
- Fix our listening ears on the Holy Spirit's message to us, not on the "lines" in the road of life.
We must train ourselves to not use an abundance of time looking at the evil going on around us. To not invest lots of time looking at the fearful things! We don't and won't pretend they aren't there; we just won't focus the majority of our attention on them. The Holy Spirit will make us aware of the "danger, toil, and snares" ahead, but they can't be our primary focus. If they are, we will notice ourselves drifting from faith to fear. Instead, let's get determined to focus our attention on our God, knowing He will prepare us for what is ahead. That is walking by faith, not by sight!
We're told in Proverbs 4:27, "Do not swerve to the right or to the left; turn your foot away from evil." You see, when we start swerving into fear, doubt, and unbelief, we aren't turning our feet away from evil but rather driving right into it! It's like we're speeding towards a head-on collision with doubt and fear, and an emotional and spiritual collision that can be dangerous to our spiritual and mental health. Christian, I believe you would agree that anything that turns our hearts away from faith and trust in God, is not a good thing, to say the least. That's why Paul warned us in Romans 14:23, "For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin."
Let me end with this bit of advice. If, during this pandemic, you're spending so much time watching and listening to the news that you feel your joy and peace leaking out of you like a tire going flat then:
Turn off the TV news and just look at occasional updates.
Quit scanning Facebook and Twitter looking for the most recent Pandemic horror stories.
- Enjoy time with your family
- Enjoy time talking with people in your home and not just on Facebook, Instagram, etc.
- Enjoy time reading His word and things that inspire your faith instead of draining it from you.
- Enjoy time listening to worship music and praising God.
- Enjoy time talking to God in prayer.
- Enjoy time catching up on things around the house you have wanted to get done for a long time.
- Call someone that you know is alone and cheer them up.
- If you are alone and feeling lonely, call someone on the phone or through Facetime or Messenger.
- Spend some time praying for those most hurt by this pandemic.
There are just a few ideas of how we can better "walk by faith, not by sight." I pray they are helpful!
God's light is shining forth like a lighthouse in the distance on this "road" we are all traveling on. Be encouraged today and know that God is with us and will not leave us or forsake us.
Take a moment now to call on the name of Jesus! Be assured He is listening and ready to fill your spiritual tank with Heavenly blessings as we walk by faith!
God bless you, Brian