Maintain your focus

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “God’s power in you and for you”

Our Bible verse for today: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.” Hebrews 12:1-2 (NIV)

Our thought for today: “Maintain your focus”

The great Christian writer C.S. Lewis once observed, “If you read history, you will find that the Christians who did the most for the present world were precisely those who thought most of the next. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this.”

What Lewis was referring to is casual Christianity. He was writing about superficial faith that makes little difference in the lives of those who profess it. It’s like the singer Jimmy Buffet once sang, “There’s a fine line between Saturday night and Sunday morning!” What Lewis and Buffet both meant is that there are a lot of professing Christians who sing like angels on Sunday morning but who then live like the devil the rest of the week. Their faith has no power to influence their lives in a positive way.

The reason that happens is because those professing Christians are not serious disciples of Jesus. They may have professed faith in Him as Savior, but they are not following Him as Lord. By contrast, the writer of the letter to the Hebrews, in 12:1-2, urged us to throw off the distractions and practices that hinder us and hold us back, and to instead fix our eyes on Jesus and keep following Him closely.

This is where our power for holy living comes from. This is what C.S. Lewis was referring to when he wrote that those Christians who have had the greatest impact on this world are the ones who were most focused on the next world. In other words, they were serious disciples. And by “greatest impact” Lewis was not just referring to the impact made by high-profile people like Billy Graham, or famous missionaries. He was also referring to average every-day Christians like you and me. Husbands and wives, mothers and fathers, grandmothers and grandfathers who live simple but serious lives of faith and who therefore make a positive impact on those around them.

Utilizing the power of God for maximum impact in our daily lives is simply a matter of fixing your eyes on Jesus and then letting your faith in Him determine your thoughts, words, and deeds.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Share this:

Related

Leave a comment Cancel reply