I shut my eyes just as my son pulled the car out into oncoming traffic.
He took off and there was nothing I could do, short of screaming, which would have been disastrous. So . . . I shut my eyes, clinched the door handle, and prayed.
Funny how I think that if I close my eyes, that maybe . . . just maybe, what is happening will be less traumatic or dramatic or maybe it will disappear. There is truth snuggled in between these silly thoughts of mine. Shutting my eyes gives me an opportunity to stop staring at what I see. Yeah, there are times I just need to take a pause. You?
There was no screeching or crunching of metal that day, but my blood pressure may have come close to exploding. My son pulled out of the grocery store parking lot. The truck that looked as if he was turning into the entrance beside us, with his flicker on, was really coming straight at us. By some miracle the man driving the truck found his brakes before he found us.
I wish that physically closing my eyes always kept me from experiencing hardship, devastation, and rejection. If that were the case you may find me stumbling through life with my eyes shut, more than open.
We must be aware. We must see. Then we must turn from what we see and ask God what He sees. Staring at the problem does not diminish its reach in my life, it lengthens it.
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We all walk through difficult circumstances, but often our focus or perspective needs shifting. I need a God-view each day so that:
- I can look beyond my reality long enough to see my life through the filter of God’s truth.
- I can breathe fully as I get to know God and discover who my heavenly father has created me to be, even in the midst of difficulties.
- I can walk in joy, waiting for God, as He infuses me with His mighty power.
Jesus “shut his eyes to” or “shut down” human opinion, by making it known that he needed His Father’s perspective.
“Jesus turned to Peter and said, “Get away from me, Satan! You are a dangerous trap to me. You are seeing things merely from a human point of view, and not from God’s.” Matthew 16:23 NLT
Peter desired to protect Jesus from the very suffering that would later save Peter from dying in his own sins. Jesus loved Peter, but he could never have accomplished the hard things he was called to do on this earth by listening to human opinion. He needed God’s perspective and so do we!
The hard things in this life come in many forms. Even the mundane, the day in and day out of OVER and OVER again, can throw us off. Yet, there are promises of hope and strength from God, if we choose his ways over our own. I hate the waiting and the choosing. I want joy, but I do not always feel like choosing joy.
“. . . the joy of the Lord is my strength” Nehemiah 8:10 NKJV
So I “shut my eyes” asking God to help me lean in to Him, to the joy and power He gives, in spite of “the me” that wants to just be me and not change.
“But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength . . .” Isaiah 40:31 NKJV
Oh the waiting is long and hard and I just want what I want within my arms reach – not His. Yet, when I’m fighting against the waiting my strength drains.
Shutting our eyes to the chaos and face planting ourselves in His word and His presence is a daily game changer. Without it I’m lost to my own ways and I fail. I’m learning to “shut my eyes” and cling to Jesus. For me writing scripture on 3 x 5 cards and carrying them wherever I go helps me cling to Jesus. I’m horrible at memorizing, so my hope is whether word by word or concept by concept, that His Word will become my words.
My knuckles may turn white from gripping the car door handle as my son learns to drive, but fear will not control me. So I shut my eyes, tell the enemy to leave, pray, and trust a little more. Maybe you can relate?
Shut your eyes and become fully awake!
“Quicken me, O Lord, for thy name’s sake . . .” Psalms 143:11 KJV
“Keep up your reputation, God—give me life! . . .” Psalms 143:11 The Message
Join me on the journey,
Joelle Povolni
P.S. My son is becoming an amazing driver in spite of his crazy mama!
