JULY THEME – “Seeing Ebenezer- “Hitherto Hath The Lord Helped Us” From God’s Perspective”
Join us in prayer and celebration as Belmont Baptist Church celebrates our Year of Jubilee, marking fifty years of God’s amazing faithfulness and looking forward with grateful hearts to all He has yet to do.
BEATS FROM YOUR PASTOR’S HEART
Look and Live (Part 2): Keep Looking
John 3:14–15; Hebrews 12:2
The Israelites were not healed because they understood the serpent on the pole. They were healed because they looked. Their healing did not come from analyzing their wounds, discussing the snakes, or comparing the severity of their pain. It came from fixing their eyes upon God’s provision. The Christian life begins the same way—and it continues the same way. We are saved by looking to Christ, and we are sanctified by continuing to look to Christ. The greatest danger for many believers is not that they have stopped believing, but that they have stopped beholding. Their eyes have drifted from the Savior to their circumstances, their failures, their fears, or themselves.
The Direction of Your Eyes Determines the Condition of Your Heart
Where your eyes rest, your heart will soon follow. Peter walked on water only while his gaze remained on Jesus. The moment he focused on the wind and waves, fear overcame faith, and he began to sink. Nothing around Peter had changed. The storm was still raging. What changed was the direction of his gaze. The same is true for us. Peace is not found when our circumstances improve; peace is found when our vision is corrected. Christ has never ceased reigning. He has never lost control. One deliberate look toward Him can quiet a heart that has been agitated for days.
Looking Is a Daily Discipline
Hebrews tells us to be “looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.” This is not a passing glance but a continual fixing of the eyes. Just as a compass constantly points north, the believer must continually redirect his heart toward Christ throughout the day. Every disappointment is another invitation to look.
Every temptation is another invitation to look.
Every anxious thought is another invitation to look.
Every success is another invitation to look lest we begin looking at ourselves. The Christian who learns to continually behold Christ discovers a steady peace that the world cannot understand.
We Become What We Behold
Second Corinthians 3:18 teaches that as we behold the glory of the Lord, we “are changed into the same image.” Transformation does not primarily come by trying harder. It comes by seeing Him more clearly. The more we behold His humility, the more humble we become. The more we behold His patience, the more patient we become. The more we behold His love, the more His love is reproduced within us. Victory is not found in focusing on becoming more like Christ. Victory is found in focusing on Christ Himself. As we behold Him, the Holy Spirit performs the transformation we could never accomplish through self-effort.
A sunflower has an amazing characteristic. Throughout the day, it continually turns toward the sun, following its light from sunrise until sunset. Its growth depends upon remaining oriented toward its source of light. God designed His children to live the same way. Our souls flourish only as they continually turn toward the Son of God. When we cease looking at Him, our hearts begin to droop beneath the weight of this fallen world. But every time we lift our eyes again, His light strengthens, steadies, and renews us.
The answer to yesterday’s burden is the same answer for today’s burden: Look and live. The answer to tomorrow’s uncertainty will be no different. Do not spend your strength staring at the snakes. Do not become consumed with your wounds. Lift your eyes again to Jesus. Every fresh look at Christ renews faith, restores perspective, and reminds us that the One who saved us is the One who is sustaining us. The Christian life is simply this: keep looking until faith becomes sight.
Warfare Prayer
Lord Jesus, forgive me for the countless times my eyes have wandered from You. Teach me to discipline my heart to look continually upon Your beauty, Your sufficiency, and Your faithfulness. When fear rises, turn my eyes toward You. When discouragement comes, lift my gaze above my circumstances. May I behold You so consistently that Your life is increasingly revealed through mine. Amen.
Daily Challenge
Several times today, pause for one minute and deliberately turn your thoughts toward Christ. Read a verse, whisper His name, thank Him for His faithfulness, or simply meditate on who He is. Train your heart to keep looking. For where your eyes remain, your life will follow.
SATURDAY’S PRAYER NEEDS
Rob Davis – cancer
Mary Williams – Rehab for Broken Hip
Kim McClain’s Mother