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“The eye is the lamp of the body, so if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light.” Matthew 6:22 (ESV)

Squinting, I could barely read the fine print or so I thought it was fine print. Surprisingly to me around the age of 46, my eyes struggled to focus on anything upclose. Now all my friends had been using readers for quite a while, and I was convinced this aging event skipped over me. But then I found myself gradually holding paper further and further away – reading was becoming an issue. No need for alarm my eye doctor chuckled, “It happens to everyone.”

You see as we age, the lens inside our eye begins to harden and focusing becomes a bit more challenging. Those readers, we’ve learned to love, enable us to see upclose and avoid eye strain. Perfect solution – I’ve always got a pair with me – focusing is no longer an issue.

Wish I could say the same about my spiritual focus. Keeping my eyes fixed on God can be challenging. Don’t know about you, but I often find myself easily distracted. Facebook feeds, tweets, tv, people – seems like focusing on Him gets more difficult every day. Too many other things or people attractively attempting to capture our attention away from the One who matters most. And the sad reality is the more we allow our focus to become divided the more our hearts can become hardened to His truth. The tangible visible distorting our view of our invisible God never serves us well.

2019 ushers in a fresh opportunity to cultivate healthy eyes. Having a clear perception and understanding of God’s wisdom will not happen unless we determine to keep His Words in front of us. What will we do this year to ensure our eyes are fixed on God? Discipline and intense concentration will illuminate the very truths we need to maintain a healthy spiritual lifestyle. How will we avoid the distractions? What steps do we need to take to escape the trap of zeroing in on people versus fixing our gaze on God?

Lots of questions to consider as we head into another new year. Matthew 6:22 reminds us that it isn’t just about our gaze…. healthy eyesight positions us to reap the benefits of our entire being have spiritual insight. Now that’s a goal worth pursuing.

“Father, You have given us everything we need to succeed. Help us to embrace Your game plan and keep our eyes focused on You.”

For His Glory

Janet Martin
TRBC Women’s Life