Day 285 - Strangely Dim

Thoughts that have come from various quotes taken from the book, "Victor - Breaking Free From a Victim Based Society" by John H. Hovis. Click here to link directly to the audio file.

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“When I clearly see my identity, circumstances will have less of an impact on how I view the challenges this world will throw at me.”

As quoted from the book "Victor - Breaking Free From a Victim-Based Society" by John H. Hovis Page 44.

Identity has a way of perfecting our vision. Today’s reading touches on the impact God’s perspective on our lives has on our how we see who we are.

“Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face, and the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace.” - Helen H. Lemmel

The verse above isn’t from The Bible. It is from a popular Christian song that is filled with Biblical sentiments. For the victor, the words in this verse hold the key to being able to throw off the victim thinking that plagues us all from time to time.

When we focus our gaze on our circumstances it is so hard to see God in those circumstances. Our physical eyes are like our spiritual eyes. They can only focus on one thing at a time.

Prove it for yourself. Focus your eyes on the computer screen. At the same time try to read a note on a piece of paper right next to the computer. Yes you can see the note. You can actually make out the fact that there is writing on that paper. Problem is, the note is “strangely dim.” It is out of focus. So much so that it is almost impossible to make out what is written on that paper.

That’s how it is in the world for the victor. If we focus on our circumstances, good or bad, the view of God in our lives is fuzzy at best. In good times a fuzzy view of God isn’t something that bothers us all that much. But, when the bad times hit, a fuzzy view of God is the quickest path to the kinds of victim thinking that threatens the victor everyday of his/her life..

Our identity comes from what Jesus did for us on the cross. Our standing as God’s Child is what makes us victors. Focusing on the circumstances of life greatly limits our ability to see, understand and apply the fact that God’s goodness is for us even when bad times are part of our lives.

We have a choice - focus on circumstances and see God dimly or focus on God and let our circumstances dim by comparison. Since our circumstances have no bearing on whether we are a victor or not, why not focus our gaze on Him? It is in that “light of His glory and grace” that you have the best chance of living the life of a victor today.