As I drove to the gym this morning, it was snowing…hard. I could barely see where the road was because no plows had made it out to the country roads yet. Carefully I crept along, thinking maybe I should turn back. But winter has just begun, and I can’t start the season being thrown off by snow, so I kept creeping forward. In the darkness, I turned on my bright headlights. They only amplified the appearance of the snow, showing each flake, each obstacle in front of me. A few cars followed behind me, following my path, and one car passed me quickly. How could he see what I could not? I turned off my bright lights and let the regular headlights illuminate the road. When I shifted my gaze ahead, I could see more clearly. It felt unnatural at first, but as I continued to drive with my glance further out, it became more comfortable.
It made me think of how God wants us to set our gaze. When we look inward, trying to illuminate our lives, we see all of the things that are in the way. If we are trying to figure out this Jesus thing, we even see all of the obstacles between ourselves and God. We focus on the messy parts of our lives, the individual snowflakes, and try to clean them up or maneuver around them, as we do our path becomes less and less clear. When we adjust our gaze and look up toward God, He meets us with clarity, and we no longer see each snowflake that was stealing our gaze. We drive through them, maybe not even noticing them anymore because we can see the path ahead.
What if you stopped trying so hard, and you simply looked up? Although it will feel clumsy at first, what if rather than trying to change your actions, you put all of your efforts into shifting your gaze? I bet if you ask, God will meet you there, if you seek you will find what you are looking for, as you look to God rather than yourself, He will become compelling, and your steps will fall in line.
As that car passed me on the side of the snowy road, he wasn’t driving differently, he was seeing differently. As I changed my gaze, I began to see too.
As I change my gaze, I may realize I no longer notice all of the little snowflakes that were impeding my view, tempting me to turn around. Don’t get trapped by the worries and the things of this life, trying to change your ways on your own. Set your gaze, drive towards our Great God and let him make your path clear.
This is trust: more than myself, everything in Him. It can be a fight to keep my focus there. Sometimes I have to say aloud, “look up.” Time and time again, as I look to him, I find where all hope can be found.
This is the life you never knew you always wanted.
