Lessons From The Crucible - Part 4
“Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls.”
Hebrews 12:1-3
Recently I celebrated an anniversary of sort, though not the kind that on the surface one would naturally think favorably upon. It was nine years ago on that anniversary I sat in my Neurologist’s office and heard him say, based on all the test results and symptoms observed, “If we have to hang our hat on a diagnosis, it would be ALS.” That day seems like just yesterday in many ways, yet as I have lived it out can seem so long ago. There have been highs and lows over the past years – times of cautious optimism early on when we felt it might not be ALS at all, only to be followed by symptom progression that have pointed us back toward that diagnosis. In it all, today, as I reflect back past years and as I sit here writing this, I clearly feel, sense, and have experienced progression of the disease in my body. Yet, nine years later, I rejoice in what most take for granted – I am still walking, breathing, and serving the Lord with the same focus and as much determination as ever before, seeking to glorify the Lord each day to the best of my ability. I continue to live my life at a level that most, including I believe my doctors, would not have thought possible on that third day of July back in 2014. But God…
I have learned so many lessons since July 3, 2014, many of which I wish I had learned long before my diagnosis, but isn’t that always the case when it comes to new truths and insights. Perhaps the greatest lesson I have learned these past years is found in the verse highlighted above – when confronted with the circumstances, situations, hardships, or trials that life can bring, whether they be big, small, or the daily issues that can arise, our best decision is “looking unto Jesus…,” or, if I may, “fixing our eyes on Jesus.” If in the struggle we make that one simple, yet deeply profound decision, we would find a Jesus that has a way of bringing a peace, strength, comfort, and wisdom to us that surpasses our comprehending. I know this to be true because, like so many before me, I have experienced this truth time and time again from the midst of the crucible of trial.
- Fixing our eyes on Jesus helps to get our eyes off of that which seems insurmountable, and helps us understand we have a God Who is far bigger than any trial we are going through.
- Fixing our eyes on Jesus helps us to know there is One who endured far more for us than we could ever go through in this lifetime, allowing us to trust Him to see us through to the other side.
- Fixing our eyes on Jesus helps us get our eyes off the temporal, horizontal life we are living, and allows for us to see through “eyes” that are set upon the eternal, remembering again that this life is a vapor and temporary but the life to come is eternal and worth far more than any “pain” we could go through in our present living.
- Fixing our eyes on Jesus helps us to choose to endure life’s hardships for the sake of His higher purpose, freeing us to glorify Him regardless of and through the trial, thus helping others to see the greatness of God.
- Fixing our eyes on Jesus helps us to rightly orient our lives, aligning our thoughts to His thoughts, ordering our steps through the leading of His Holy Spirit, and helping us navigate the path He has us on, leading us to fulfill His purposes and plans for the life He has given us to live.
I have learned, more and more each day, to look unto Jesus so that my gaze doesn’t shift to how I feel, what I can or can’t do anymore, or wondering how many more days I have to walk… talk… live. Fixing my eyes on Jesus helps me to rejoice this day for the past nine years of living my life 24 hours at a time, striving to see God in every one, finding complete fulfillment in the things that are truly important in the eyes of the Lord, and not in anyway distracted by what may come in a tomorrow I have no control over anyway.
Until next time… rejoice with me in another day to live, and seek daily to fix your eyes on Jesus!
Abiding in Christ 1:1
This past Sunday, the church we attend – Veneration Church – launched a 16-month journey on what it means to abide in Christ, and to abide in Him in such a way that we can experience the fullness of joy in the here and now. I was blessed when they asked me to be a part of producing the journals for the series. As I take this journey with the church, I will be posting a weekly blog off of one of the verses we will be focusing on during that week, hence the number in the title (Month 1 : Week 1). Okay, let’s dive in…
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