KEEP YO EYES ON CHRIST

I don’t know about you, but sometimes I find myself in these situations where I feel “less” - hopeless, purposeless, worthless, passionless … fill in the blank with whatever “less” you sometimes feel. These past few weeks I've been going back and forth on this Yo-yo of feeling purposeless. In all honesty, I would say it started at the beginning of the year and has Yo-yo’d, getting deeper on each “yo” that happens. This past week I would say that I hit the depth of it. (She says hopefully lol) This year the Lord has been reworking my idea of my purpose. While I know it is for good & I know that it will turn out good, in the middle my mind has nothing to grasp onto as to what my purpose is. In almost all areas of life, I have been in a state of the unknown. This Sunday, I was in Foundations Class at my church and we were talking about careers & how when picking a job/career we should be looking to be developed in an area that is attached to our purpose. I have been in this internal struggle with myself because I didn’t finish school and as a result, I don’t have a career. I feel behind. I feel like a deadbeat sometimes. I am in a job right now, not a career and I am seeing now the importance of having a career. Combine that with having nothing to pull on as my purpose and this girl, who desires wholeheartedly to be in pursuit of purpose, hit a low point. I cried out to the Lord, quite literally cried. Desiring, almost begging, for Him to give me a clear vision of what it is that I am called to do. After 6 months of living in the unknown, and asking for clarity - He gave it. It was vague, not lots of details…. But as He does, He showed up right on time. After He shared what it was, He told me to read through Exodus, so of course I did. I got this...

''So the Egyptians made the Israelites their slaves. They appointed brutal slave drivers over them, hoping to wear them down with crushing labor. They forced them to build the cities of Pithom and Rameses as supply centers for the king. ' But the more the Egyptians oppressed them, the more the Israelites multiplied and spread, and the more alarmed the Egyptians became. So the Egyptians worked the people of Israel without mercy. They made their lives bitter, forcing them to mix mortar and make bricks and do all the work in the fields. They were ruthless in all their demands. '

Exodus 1:11-14

What I saw was a choice that the Israelites had. They could have set their mind on the fact that they were in slavery, bondage & being worked tirelessly OR they could set their mind on the faithfulness and goodness of God. I then thought about 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

'Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.'

That doesn’t mean we should give thanks FOR everything, but in everything, if your mind is set on the eternal things vs the things of this world, there is something to give thanks for. One more verse that made me think of Hebrews 12:1-2 (this is why it is important to read your Word and allow it to take root inside of you because if you do not know that these verses are there, you can miss something HUGE the Spirit is trying to reveal through the scripture.) 

'Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.'

I think a lot of the time when this verse is taught, it is taught from the perspective of the “sin that so easily entangles us” but we forget that it isn’t just sin that gets in the way of us running our race. Anything that takes our eyes off of Jesus, and His position gets in the way. Me, having an internal struggle, because I feel like I have no purpose, is not a sin. In fact it is a very real feeling & valid feeling... that did not lead to committing sin… but what it did was take me away from actively running my race… I felt like I didn’t even know what race to run. When in reality, the only part of the race that matters is that I am running toward Christ. As long as I keep my eyes on Him the rest will work itself out.

That perspective keeps us from getting to the point where we feel “less”. You best believe He wants His plan for you to come to pass more than you want it to. If you're feeling hopeless keep your eyes on Christ, knowing that He has a plan and He wants it to come to pass. If you are feeling worthless, keep your eyes on Christ, knowing that because there is a plan for your life you are worthy. If you are feeling passionless, keep your eyes on Christ, knowing that He wants His plan to come to pass more than you do, He has the passion you need. Whatever "less" you are feeling... KEEP YOUR EYES ON CHRIST!! Stay the course, get in your Word - allow it to wash over you, and cast your cares on Him. I promise - more importantly HE promises, it WILL all work out in the end, for His Glory!