By A. Trevor Sutton
Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you (Proverbs 4:25 ESV).
Funambulists, better known as tightrope walkers, do what cannot be done. While it seems impossible to balance on so thin a rope so high in the air, these athletes make it look easy.
The trick, they tell us, lies in looking straight ahead, not down or to the side. You’d think it would be wise to look down at the rope, to watch each step by step by step. You’d think this would ensure proper footing. You’d think it would guarantee safety. If you think that, you’d be wrong.
Staring down at a shaky cable creates not stability but imbalance. Only a steady forward gaze makes proper balance possible.
We are all tightrope walkers. Keeping balanced, focused, and stable as we live in this fallen world is extremely difficult. Walking the straight and narrow presents a constant struggle. Jesus warned us about that:
The gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few (Matthew 7:14 ESV).
It’s tempting to spend our lives scrolling through social media posts, scrimping to buy a slightly larger television, and shuttling children from one activity to the next.
While not evil in and of themselves, these things can divert our attention. They can distract us from the love Jesus showed for us on Calvary’s cross and the forgiveness he won for us there. They can derail our prayer lives and sidetrack our witness and our service in our community.
Don’t be distracted! As you go about your day, do it with your eyes on Jesus! Let his love for you be the lens through which you see everything else. He is the One who will keep you steady, stable for now and for all eternity.
Jesus, fix my eyes on you now and always. Be the lens through which I see everything and everyone else . . .
Editor’s note: Today’s devotion is slightly adapted from Focus: Seeing Jesus Clearly.
Editor’s note:
Don’t be distracted! As you go about your day, do it with your eyes on Jesus! Let his love for you be the lens through which you see everything else. He is the One who will keep you steady, stable for now and for all eternity.
