How to Know God's Will - Part 6
Choosing God's Will Over All The Options
How to know God's will - Part 6
by Rhonda Jackson
Ask a serious motorcycle enthusiast or mountain biker about target fixation and you may see them shudder. A bike tends to go where its rider is looking; if the rider becomes overly focused on an obstacle, they crash right into it. Similarly, this phenomenon occurs in cars, when our eyes become so fixated on, say, the police car’s flashing lights and the auto in the breakdown lane, we veer right into them. An internet search called “crashes on the shoulder” illustrates target fixation in a graphic and terrifying way! The solution to target fixation: Don’t look where you don’t want to go!
As followers of Christ, we stand to learn a lot from this phenomenon. To say that our modern world is full of distractions would be a laughable understatement, but it’s far from a new concept. We need only travel as far as 3 chapters in Genesis to see how the serpent took Adam and Eve’s focus away from everything they had and redirected it to the one thing they didn’t – the forbidden fruit. The enemy specializes in distractions, longing for us to fixate on the negative: our past hurts, our present seemingly hopeless situations, and our uncertain futures. But God has a better idea; one the apostle Paul expresses in Ephesians 1:9-11:
God has now revealed to us his mysterious will regarding Christ—which is to fulfill his own good plan. And this is the plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ—everything in heaven and on earth. Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us in advance, and he makes everything work out according to his plan.
In Christ, God’s plans encompass our pasts – He knew us and chose us as His own before we were even born – our presents – we are united with Christ, who sent the Holy Spirit as His advocate and helper – and our futures – He will bring all things together under His authority. Paul uses a Greek word for this “summing up,” in which all the pieces of our lives fall into place and are given meaning by our God, who exists at the center of life itself: anakephaalaiosasthai. Say it with me! Or not!
Paul uses a simpler word to explain WHY God would lavish His Holy Spirit on us, in Ephesians 1:14 : He did this so we would praise and glorify him. As we redirect our thoughts to Christ, fixating on His truth, His sacrifice, and His great and overwhelming love for us, we find ourselves in a posture of PRAISE. As we focus on God throughout the day – praising Him in gratitude for our food, clothing, and shelter, praising Him in choosing to honor our bodies, our families, and our vocations – as we praise Him on PURPOSE – His Spirit lifts ours! When the object of our target fixation is Jesus Christ; when we invite Him into every aspect of our past, present, and future, when we praise Him in the everyday rhythms of life, we open the door for His Spirit to shine!
God’s will is made more clear through our praise!
This post was inspired by the following message.
How to know God's will - Part 6
by Rhonda Jackson
Ask a serious motorcycle enthusiast or mountain biker about target fixation and you may see them shudder. A bike tends to go where its rider is looking; if the rider becomes overly focused on an obstacle, they crash right into it. Similarly, this phenomenon occurs in cars, when our eyes become so fixated on, say, the police car’s flashing lights and the auto in the breakdown lane, we veer right into them. An internet search called “crashes on the shoulder” illustrates target fixation in a graphic and terrifying way! The solution to target fixation: Don’t look where you don’t want to go!
As followers of Christ, we stand to learn a lot from this phenomenon. To say that our modern world is full of distractions would be a laughable understatement, but it’s far from a new concept. We need only travel as far as 3 chapters in Genesis to see how the serpent took Adam and Eve’s focus away from everything they had and redirected it to the one thing they didn’t – the forbidden fruit. The enemy specializes in distractions, longing for us to fixate on the negative: our past hurts, our present seemingly hopeless situations, and our uncertain futures. But God has a better idea; one the apostle Paul expresses in Ephesians 1:9-11:
God has now revealed to us his mysterious will regarding Christ—which is to fulfill his own good plan. And this is the plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ—everything in heaven and on earth. Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us in advance, and he makes everything work out according to his plan.
In Christ, God’s plans encompass our pasts – He knew us and chose us as His own before we were even born – our presents – we are united with Christ, who sent the Holy Spirit as His advocate and helper – and our futures – He will bring all things together under His authority. Paul uses a Greek word for this “summing up,” in which all the pieces of our lives fall into place and are given meaning by our God, who exists at the center of life itself: anakephaalaiosasthai. Say it with me! Or not!
Paul uses a simpler word to explain WHY God would lavish His Holy Spirit on us, in Ephesians 1:14 : He did this so we would praise and glorify him. As we redirect our thoughts to Christ, fixating on His truth, His sacrifice, and His great and overwhelming love for us, we find ourselves in a posture of PRAISE. As we focus on God throughout the day – praising Him in gratitude for our food, clothing, and shelter, praising Him in choosing to honor our bodies, our families, and our vocations – as we praise Him on PURPOSE – His Spirit lifts ours! When the object of our target fixation is Jesus Christ; when we invite Him into every aspect of our past, present, and future, when we praise Him in the everyday rhythms of life, we open the door for His Spirit to shine!
God’s will is made more clear through our praise!
This post was inspired by the following message.
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