“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
(Hebrews 12:2)
Our congregation in our local church is experiencing an unsettling, very disturbing time of upheaval, in which all the members have become divided about the major decisions being made. Many of us were feeling bewildered and lost, so both my husband and I were pleased to join a group who decided to meet to pray together, during the prayer time one of the members had a wakeup call for us all. She had suddenly realised we were focusing so much on the problem at hand we had forgotten to focus on Jesus himself, “the author and perfecter of our faith.” (Hebrews 12:2) What a relief to abandon the problem to him. What a relief to let go. What a relief to stop and listen to that small voice instead of the loud voices of dissension racing through our minds. We had allowed the problem to distract us so much we had taken our eyes of Jesus.
Later I was thinking of how easily one can be distracted in all sorts of life pursuits, in particular while driving, and we read that one of the major causes of road accidents are now caused by distracted drivers who are using all sorts of electronic devices while they drive, from cell phones to lap tops. The list goes on from ladies applying make up to pouring coffee to eating lunch and being distracted leads to lack of concentration and 
often results in dangerous driving and accidents.
Our Christian walk is no different and distractions that cause us to take our eyes away from the Lord can also lead to dangerous situations. David knew only too well that life produces many traps that can snare us so easily, if we are trusting ourselves to solve them without consulting the Lord to direct us;
“My eyes are ever on the Lord, for only he will release my feet from the snare.” (Psalm 25:15)
Our prayer time also revealed that concentrating on what we perceived were others’ shortcomings was a sure way of distracting us and losing our focus yet again on our “perfecter of our faith” who warned us;
“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no intention to the plank in your own eye?” (Matthew 7:3)
So again we heard the Lord’s message for us all for any division that divides his loved ones.
Repentance Forgiveness
Whatever situation is causing us grief, being humble enough to allow the Lord to show us where we might be part of the problem brings about incredible healing and no matter what any of us may be embroiled in from family problems/ neighbours/ work colleagues fixing our eyes on Jesus is the one sure way to see things his way.
“Show me your ways, O, Lord, teach me your paths; guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Saviour, and my hope is in you all day long.” (Psalm 25:4 – 5)
God Speaking 
Jo – Thanks, as always, for the good words. I’ve been trying to get re-focused myself on a particular problem. The Philippians verse was one I’ve been meditating on, and, of course Psalms 25:4-5 comes to mind often (as we’ve “discussed” before).
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By: Bill Jones on July 3, 2015
at 06:34
How appropriate your words are again today, Jo. This week I could not open your blog for three days because of the “distractions“ that had cropped up in my life – medical, family, professional problems. Reading your words has brought back the calm and perspective that comes when we fix our eyes on Jesus. Thank you.
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By: Jo Mercer on June 29, 2015
at 17:35
Criticism comes so quickly and easily. Thank you Jo for the reminder that it’s often the plank in our own eye, and that there is a way to remove that plank.
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By: mary Penfold on June 26, 2015
at 18:43
Great blog Mum and good reminder of where to keep my focus!
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By: dextj on June 26, 2015
at 13:54