A New Perspective
Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you. Proverbs 4:25
Today I am writing from the kitchen table instead of my writing desk. What a different perspective I have this morning! This is not my normal landscape; I have my own bird feeders (as does Michael) but I am blessed with a clear view of the deer field.
While the bread is baking, I chose to sit out here today and share a new inspiration.
When we make even the slightest shift in our location, it is amazing how different everything looks! I obviously have missed some sights of nature—but today I didn’t!
Let your gaze be straight before you. This is not a suggestion; it is a directive. No matter where we are, we are supposed to look forward! While change is good, we can easily be pulled off our heavenly course with daily circumstances, life’s curve balls, media hype, and regrets from the past. If we gaze too long, we tend to veer off the road in that darker direction.
Regardless of where we are at any given time, in any given day, we are called to look straight ahead. Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways. Do not turn to the right or the left; keep your foot from evil (Proverbs 4:26-27, NIV).
Is this even possible for us to accomplish as humans? As Christians? It is going to take some practice and dedicated focus to pull this off with any success. To put it bluntly, it is unnatural!
Now, I must be honest with you all: I had to move back to my writing desk. There were way too many interruptions and too many sounds to investigate. The cat sat in the window and made little throaty squeaks. I had to check the bread. Michael was in an out. There were phone calls to answer.
In my writing room, I turn my phone off and keep my gaze straight ahead…well, most of the time. It is here in this chair that I can best hear from the Holy Spirit.
Perhaps I have missed a few things along the way by habitually writing at my desk. However, my spiritual radar comes in much stronger here in my chair. I know where I belong, and I recognize the scenery on the path I’m walking.
Gracious Father, thank You for all the beauty that You provide. Teach us to keep our eyes looking straight ahead and looking for You. AMEN.
Photo: Michael Johnston