A Psalm that captured my attention today was “Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you.” Psalm 63:3 (ESV). What it brought to my attention was just how stunning God’s steadfast love is. It is better than life itself. That is easy to say unless you are gasping for your last breath of life. Then the survival instinct triggers desperation and at that moment, the breath of life totally dominates your thoughts. But does that moment really trump the great pleasure a person has for God’s steadfast love? Or is it just a momentary instinct?
I’ve been reading Connie’s (my deceased wife) prayer journals. I am learning a lot about what solid faith in God looks like in real time. I’m learning God is not as interested in our momentary feelings as He is in the throbbing of our inner man that is far more stable. There is no doubt about it, Connie’s mind and emotions relentlessly tried to pull her into the thick quagmire of disappointment, defeat, and discouragement. However, as you read her notes, like a powerful rubber band, she would invariably snap back to the passion and conviction in her heart, which was her conviction of the steadfast love God had for her and the strength she received from that. To be candid, this resilience has been so stunning it brought me to tears multiple times.
I think of the past Christian martyrs. I think specifically of Stephen, an early church deacon who was brought before the Jewish leader’s council. “… everyone in the high council stared at Stephen, because his face became as bright as an angel’s. Acts 6:15 (NLT2). His humanity faced extreme pressure, but he didn’t allow it to crush him. But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed steadily into heaven and saw the glory of God, and he saw Jesus standing in the place of honor at God’s right hand. Acts 7:55 (NLT2). Jesus was otherwise said to be sitting at the right hand of the Father, but now He was “standing”. That suggests to me Stephen envisioned Jesus standing and cheering Him on. When these Jewish leaders saw their intimidation wasn’t working, they took him out of the city and threw stones at him. He didn’t have Sylvester Stallone’s body in the movie ‘Rocky’. I can’t help but think he felt the immediate pain when a stone thrown by the Jewish leaders hit his body. It was in the pain of the dying process, “He fell to his knees, shouting, ‘Lord, don’t charge them with this sin!’ And with that, he died.” Acts 7:60 (NLT2). As Jesus watched, He wasn’t focused on the instantaneous thought that flashed through Stephen’s mind when the stone hit him. He was delighted in Stephen’s resilient faith in Him.
We can’t stop birds flying over our heads, but we can keep them from making a nest there. We can’t control random thoughts, but we are accountable for the thoughts we dwell on.
I have taken comfort hundreds of times when unhealthy thoughts passed through my head, but like a rubber band, my mind would snap back to focusing on God and His word. I believe faith in God doesn’t stop the birds from flying over your head. Rather, it is all about fixing our mind on things above. “To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.” Romans 8:6 (NRSV). Paul also wrote, “Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.” Colossians 3:2 (ESV)
What have you been doing to set your mind on the things above? You can only do that by spending valued time in His Presence reading His Word. There are no short cuts to this.