What are you looking at?

What we look at and think about affects our emotions and our action or inaction.

Let’s consider a Bible story as an example…

God delivered the Israelites out of slavery and promised them new wonderful land of their own, one full of good things. As God led them through the wilderness away from their place of slavery, the Israelites looked around them and complained about not having food. God provided food. They complained about not having water. God gave them water. He delivered them from their problems and their enemies.. and yet they complained. When they reached the promised land and scouted it, they again complained. As I read about this I just shook my head. God had been with them the whole way and was leading them towards a better place. I started to think badly of God’s people until God told me that I do the same thing. What!?

He told me that we all have periods of wilderness between when we pray and start believing for the promises to be fulfilled and their fulfillment. And we, like the Children of Israel, look around at our circumstances or think about what we don’t have yet and complain, at least to ourselves.

The Children of Israel should have focused not on circumstances, discomforts or even promises yet to be realized, but should have focused on something else…someone else. God was with them. The whole time they were focused on what they did not have they could have been focusing on Who they had, the great and gracious Lord. It is a lesson for us. We already have something greater than any answered prayer. We have a loving God with us…constantly desiring to bless us. Focus on the BEST. He’ll see to the rest.