Proverbs 15:29-31 (TPT)
29 The Lord doesn’t respond to the wicked,
but he’s moved to answer the prayers of his godly lovers.
30 Eyes that focus on what is beautiful[a] bring joy to the heart,
and hearing a good report
refreshes and strengthens the inner being.[b]
31 Accepting constructive criticism
opens your heart to the path of life,
making you right at home among the wise.
Matthew 6:22 (TPT)
22 “The eyes of your spirit allow revelation-light[a] to enter into your being. If your heart is unclouded, the light floods in!
When our gaze is constantly drawn to what is crooked, what is broken, what is flawed, what is in bondage . . . we can quickly become what we behold...we can begin to walk as one enslaved and no longer carry ourselves as children of the freedom we have been given in Christ Jesus. It is hard not to constantly look at what needs to be fixed, what is undone, what is wrong. It is also hard to model the freedom we desire and profess for others if we forget what it looks and feels like. This has been a hard, long and ongoing lesson for me. In each journey with a new woman, hearing, seeing, feeling her bondage and pain I quickly position myself as a victim alongside of her rather than positioning myself out ahead to show her the way through. I begin to see change, uncertainty, and offers of hope as opportunities to be hurt, rejected or exposed. There is a very fine line between walking out compassion and empathy and walking as a carrier of hope, joy and freedom without taking on the burdens of fear, doubt and shame. I have not mastered that line, but I know that when I become consciously aware that I am walking again as one enslaved and I make the decision to embrace the hurt, pain and bondage of another I must CHOOSE NOT TO experience it as something that I will be victim to but as something I can trust to Jesus. Only then can I turn and walk again the road unencumbered, full of joy and unashamedly professing my hope. Then I know I become a bearer of something worth fighting for!
May your eyes be fixed on the beauty of Jesus! May revelation-light fill your being!
May your heart be unclouded so you can walk in freedom!