Keeping Your Eyes on the Road Ahead

Our sermon today at Valley Creek Church had us listening to a guest speaker- one of our elders Don Manning.  His sermon had some great applications and refreshing insight to me as a father, husband and bread winner.  Several points stuck out but one resonated with profound clarity to me:

Keeping your eyes on the Lord!  We daily lose sight of God working in our lives and rush from one moment to the next, stuck in the past, worried about the future and losing sight of the here and now. Can you identify with that? I sure can!

I remember instantly thinking about the parallels between what he said and every day life. Rare is a day in which I drive to work and not see a traffic accident or a near miss.  We travel with it all the time- we see someone tailgating us or the cars near us, texting on the phone, eating, doing makeup, shooting across several lanes at once to make an exit, you get the idea. As a result, WE have to look out for them and make concessions lest we get a chance to meet them in person.

It struck me this morning (pardon the pun) how we take our eyes off Jesus and start looking at life by only what is directly in front of us; the exact same way so many people drive today. This is a reactive lifestyle and with the pace of life faster than ever it is even more vital for us to slow down and be more deliberate in our lives.

I remember a time in the 70's and 80's in which a third brake light was not on the back of cars, but legislators thought it prudent to create a law to help us avoid accidents by mandating that light be installed in all passenger vehicles. Would it not have been a better idea to teach us how to drive properly? By that I mean to look 20-30 seconds ahead of the vehicle in front of us. I learned this trick in a professional driving course years ago and an amazing thing happened when I did: I could not only see much further ahead but my periphery also increased. In other words, by simply changing my point of focus, much more came into clarity and I was better able to avoid an accident.

While we think we see a lot, from God's perspective our view is like   looking at the world between our hands like this image shows.

I always scratched my head at how the Israelites could not remember one day to the next the miracles God gave them to escape Egypt and be delivered from slavery. Of course they didn't have the benefit of the Holy Spirit to stay with them but I also miss how I forget every day what He has done for me and my family when I worry about something or don't pray for guidance. I am in effect, staring at the bumper of the car in front of me while I am traveling through life at a high rate of speed. (I touched on the importance of timing in your life in my January 27 article when I write about Jesus' never being in a hurry). Day by day I strive to change my focus onto God.

When we put our eyes on God literally and figuratively, we will as a result gain the vision our loving Father has for us minimizing any distractions, but we also can see rising distractions exactly as they are and be fully prepared to address or dismiss them as appropriate. This will permit us to live in the moment, leave the past in the past and welcome the future gracefully and never in a hurry, and allow us to smell the roses. 

Why do we face trials?

The economy has been hard on all of us- some more than others. Well, let me rephrase that: The public's perception of the economy has been hard on us. I say that because really, our economy WAS doing fine, even though gas has shot through the roof. But now, we have a pandemic of banks failing after they backed shaky loans on A.R.M. loans people should not have bought into. This and other factors has caused a ripple effect which has now had a dramatic impact in nearly all aspects of our (and the world's) economy. These factors have impacted everyone in the United States for the most part in a negative way. People stressed to their limits from budgetary concerns were exacerbated by the compounding effects of the recent (non) crisis.

Our problems pale in comparison to these facts and the current situation with so many of our neighbors from Houston are just recently returned to their homes 10 days after Hurricane Ike hit SE Texas, taking everything from some people.

When we do face a trial, we are quick to ask "Why me? What did I do to deserve this? Why has God forsaken me?"

Well, the real question might better be "Why NOT me?" Sometimes we bring things upon ourselves, and other times we are being tested. How can you tell the difference? Sometimes, you can't. Only with prayer and meditation can some of these answers be had. One day a few years ago, as I was driving 1 1/2 hours to an account, it suddenly hit me: We all have a cross to bear in our lives; some are bigger than others. For some it is financial, for others it is health, fidelity, or maybe job security, or any combination thereof. During these times, we may think we are the only ones experiencing what we are going through at the time, but truth be told, many others have been there before, and many more will be there after, but most importantly, many are going through the same thing you are at the same time.

You have not been singled out. Remember Job was tested for his faith in God, and lost EVERYTHING because of a wager made by Satan. Job, like the rest of us, asked why many times, and still proved his faith by not losing sight of what was first in his life- his realtionship and communion with God.

During the sermon last Sunday, Pastor Ron talked about why trials happen. While I had never verbalized why, the reasons he listed I felt were dead on:

1. Suffering develops maturity of faith (like fire tempers and strengthens steel) James 1:2-4


2. Suffering helps us identify with Christ (which is why he suffered, so he could identify with US) Phillipians 1:29


3. Suffering proves we are God's children Hebrews 12:7-8


4. Suffering helps us become holy Hebrews 12:10


5. Suffering produces righteousness & peace Hebrews 12:11


6. Suffering can lead to godliness Hebrews 12:24-25


7. Suffering allows us to minister to others in a personal way 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

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When Ron was speaking about these reasons for trials, he also gave us some startling facts:

• Since Christ's death 2,000 years ago, 43 million believers have been martyred, over 50% of which have been in the last 100 years.
• 200 million Christians face persecution daily around the world.
• 300 Christians die daily for their beliefs
  
  - Source: World Evangelical Encyclopedia www.persecution.com

Now what I am facing pales in comparison to this persecution, and I would believe our neighbors in Houston would, for the most part, agree their problems are pretty trivial compared to what some of our Christian brothers and sisters are facing.

My wife and I grew up together. That is to say, we started dating when we were 16, so we have been through a lot together. From the difficulties of being a soldier deployed, the pain of the separation to the anxiety of transitioning from the military to the civilian sector, buying a home, having children and professional downturns, we have run through many trials, and our marriage has only gotten stronger. Not because we are so devout and such great Christians, but because we comfort and strengthen each other in times of need. When I am feeling weak, she bolsters my confidence when I need it most, and vice versa. The only thing I wish I could change is the hardship she and my children have experienced for it has been difficult at times. (We have gotten a lot of love,prayers and support from dear friends and the church as well!)

I look back on those periods with a certain degree of pride AND humility- we weathered the storms with our faith, but would not have been able to do it alone. Without His strength, grace and love, we would have faltered long ago; but we are stronger for it, and I think we have a lot more character because of these trials. I wouldn't trade them for anything, for I am proud to carry my cross as a child of God.

I have also noticed during the hardships, the more we take our eye off the "problem" and keep our eyes on God, the easier the hardship becomes. When I pray and commune with God, I find it much easier to deal with the storm, and thereby become more holy (if you will), more spiritual, more understanding. And because we are more understanding after a trial, we can identify with others going through their hardships, and relate more and provide greater love and support in their hour of need.

Please share with us some of your experiences in which you faced a trial and your faith saw you through it!