I am on a journey! My journey is such that I encourage others to join me. My journey is one everyone should want to be on even if you don’t choose to join me in my journey. My journey is traveling on the way to heaven and living with Jesus. I read a Bible verse and know that I need to remember it during my everyday journeying. “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” Hebrews 12:1 (NIV) When I pack for a long trip to somewhere, every extra item I cram into my suitcase adds weight to my shoulders. As I travel each day and each mile, what seemed important at the start of my journey only slows me down and distracts me from the scenery along the way. I am trying to take these thoughts to heart: life each day here on earth is much the same as journeying to heaven. The Bible reminds us that we are citizens of heaven, simply passing through this world on our way home. Yet, it is easy to fill our days—and our hearts—with “extras.” These extras aren’t always bad things. They can be busy schedules, endless scrolling, material clutter, or the constant pressure to keep up with everyone else. Slowly, those temporary comforts crowd out the eternal purpose God has for us. We all have stuff! Once the “stuff” seemed important. But is it really important? Simplifying your life isn’t about earning your way to heaven; I like to think it is more about clearing space to walk even more closely with Jesus right now. When we can set down the weight of worldly distractions, you can gain the freedom to notice God’s grace in the quiet moments, love the people right in front of you, and keep your eyes fixed on what truly lasts. You don’t need to carry the heavy baggage of this world into a kingdom where everything is already provided. Pack light.
To help me on my journey, I found these points of ways to travel lighter to think about: Look at your commitments this week and ask which ones draw you closer to God and others, and which ones are simply noise. Clear off a single table, unsubscribe from a distracting feed, or donate something you no longer need as a physical act of letting go. Spend five quiet minutes in prayer thanking God that your ultimate home is secure, asking Him to show you what you can lay down today. Taking these points into consideration makes me think about why I have something and is it necessary. And that makes me realize that often I can say, No, I don’t need it. Lord, thank You for the promise of eternity with You. Forgive me for letting the temporary clutter of this world weigh me down and distract me from Your presence. Give me the wisdom to see what is truly essential, the courage to let go of the extras, and the joy of walking lightly with You each step of the way.
My resolution is to find something everyday to eliminate. It might be a dish or a book or a magazine or an item of clothing. Some things are easy! Others are harder to let go. Some I have had for years and letting go is harder for them. Some I couldn’t let go when
my mother passed away. I need to realize I still can have memories without the things that she treasured. I can let some of them go–maybe.
At any rate, I have been able to lighten my journey, a little bit of progress at least. I have lots of collections, some many would consider a bit unusual. From childhood I have collected plastic bottle caps. Bet you don’t know anyone else that does that! I collect owls, and chickens. I collect books and rocks. I collect miniature items. I collect “quotes.” Recently someone added to my cooking books and magazine collection. That sent me on my journey of getting lighter. I had to decide to not keep many of the “gift.” Part of letting them go was made easier when I sat down to look at them and found little that would add to my life. I collect my quotes digitally these days but I know that I can find ones to add to my collection in some of the magazines and papers that will get placed in the recycle bin. Looking through them, I found several that “needed” saving.
One particularly got my attention and sent me thinking about the deeper below the surface meaning for me. “If we could see ourselves as others see us, we’d probably have our eyes examined.” Since both myself and my husband have had eye exams recently, it had even more meaning for us. There is a humorous truth in that quote/saying. When we look in the mirror, we tend to adjust our posture, smooth our hair, and see the best version of ourselves. Even more than that, we judge ourselves by our good intentions, while others experience us through our actual actions and words. Even so, we all carry blind spots around with us. We might think we are being firm, while someone else experiences us as harsh. We might think we are simply busy, while a loved one feels neglected. If we suddenly saw an unedited replay of how we come across to the people around us, our first instinct might be to deny it—to insist that their “vision” is blurry, or that our own eyes need checking. This is why humility is so important. Jesus gently warns against focusing on the speck of sawdust in someone else’s eye while ignoring the plank in our own (Matthew 7:3–5). It is easy to spot flaws in others, yet remarkably difficult to see our own pride, impatience, or selfishness. “And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye.” NLV Or in other words, “Don’t pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults—unless, of course, you want the same treatment. That critical spirit has a way of boomeranging. It’s easy to see a smudge on your neighbor’s face and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own. Do you have the nerve to say, ‘Let me wash your face for you,’ when your own face is distorted by contempt? It’s this whole traveling road-show mentality all over again, playing a holier-than-thou part instead of just living your part. Wipe that ugly sneer off your own face, and you might be fit to offer a washcloth to your neighbor.” Message Bible We can have true spiritual growth that begins when we stop defending our image and ask God to give us clear vision. Instead of waiting for a painful wake-up call from the people around us, we can invite God to examine our hearts daily. Check your blind spots: Is there a recurring tension in your relationships that might point to something you haven’t noticed about yourself? Who in your life loves you enough to tell you the honest
truth gently? David’s simple, courageous prayer from Psalm 139:23–24 can be our own: “Search me, God, and know my heart… See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” When we let God adjust our vision, we don’t have to fear what others see. We become quicker to apologize, slower to judge, and far more full of grace—both for ourselves and for everyone around us. I have been learning/finding that I have much to improve on.
I liked the following thoughts by an author—Seemingly evil people like Stalin, Hitler, Pol Pot, the Columbine shooters, the 9/11 terrorist—none of these people ever manifested the image of God. They were cruel, misguided individuals who destroyed the lives of others. Yet the Bible tells me that every human being is made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27). But what do I do with tyrants, murderers and purveyors of brutality? I don’t even have to go with these worst-case examples. Someonemaybe roughed me up with negative comments during a meeting. A stranger yells abusive words as he passes me on the road because I wasn’t going fast enough. Cruelty and meanness are all around. Homelife can be grim. Kids squabble over the most unimportant matters to the point of screaming and slamming doors. They disobey but pretend ignorance. Maybe even adults try to play that game. Then I have to face that individual who glares back from the mirror. Can it be true that I—the one who just made a family member want to cry, the one who fantasizes about saying something mean to a boss or someone else—am made in the image of God? It is often a real stretch.
The Bible is unyielding in the truth of God’s plans. Instead of grumbling, what if I just try to take this seriously? What if I believed King David, who wrote, “I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well” (Psalm 139:14)? I’d have to repent, repent of doubting the goodness of God’s creation, in spite of my current messed-up condition. I am treasured and bear His imprint and image. He’s given me a mind that can think and create. He’s given me a voice that can speak and (sing). He’s given me the capacity for relationships with family and friends, neighbors and others. I have a conscience that, when guided by truth, serves as a compass for right—especially when I look past the logs and concentrate on the specks in my own eyes. If I can begin to see myself this way, is it possible that I could think of others this way, too? “So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view,” Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 5:16.
With God’s power, I can surrender hatred and desire for revenge. I can forgive…. I can pray for…. I can interact in a respectful way. Maybe God wants me to learn some things. Maybe I despair, wondering if someone will change. I throw up my hands and say, “Forget it; she’ll never get it.” God’s Word says my friend is still valued and loved by the Lord. But what about those worst-case examples? God’s truth isn’t selective. With an eternal perspective streaming through my mind, I begin to see, quite correctly, that God’s image is always there. I just need the truth to wash away the grime of muddled thinking and see others through God’s eyes. (Clem Boyd)
When we begin to see them like God sees them, we will not only have compassion and grace for them, but we will experience a sense of urgency in sharing our faith with them so they can come to know Jesus like we know Jesus.
Dear Lord, help me to see other people the way you see them. I don’t want to have the same outlook on others as the Pharisees. I want to see people like Jesus saw people. Give me your eyes to see those who are far from you and give me strength and courage to share the gospel with them when the time comes. In Jesus’ name, amen.
God sees everyone who doesn’t know Him as someone who is lost. You need to begin to see a person far from God the same way you see a child of yours who is lost, and you will see your one in a totally different light.
It’s not about what they’ve done to mess up or all the ways they’ve fallen short. At the end of the day, if they don’t know Jesus, they’re lost, which means they’re far from God. That’s what we need to see when we look at those who are lost. We need to see them as people who are far from God and who need a Savior. When we begin to see them like God sees them, we will not only have compassion and grace for them, but we will experience a sense of urgency in sharing our faith with them so they can come to know Jesus like we know Jesus. Dear Lord, help me to see other people the way you see them. I don’t want to have the same outlook on others as the Pharisees. I want to see people like Jesus saw people. Give me your eyes to see those who are far from you and give me strength and courage to share the gospel with them when the time comes. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Jesus addresses the human habit of hyper-focusing on someone else’s minor faults while remaining completely blind to our own massive blind spots in Matthew 7:3–5
“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?”
Jesus painted an absurd comic mental picture: a person walking around with an entire wooden timber (a log or plank) jutting out of their own face, earnestly squinting and leaning in to tweeze a tiny speck of dust out of a friend’s eye. It is absurd, intrusive, and dangerous. Yet it mirrors how easily we operate in daily life. It is infinitely easier to diagnose everyone else’s attitude, laziness, insensitivity, or bad habits than it is to sit quietly and examine our own pride, envy, or selfishness. Spotting someone else’s failure makes us feel temporarily superior or morally safe. If we are busy checking out someone else’s garden, we don’t have to pull the weeds in our own. Our own habits, justifications, and rationalizations become so familiar to us that they practically blur into the background. We are blinded by our specks. Notice that Jesus does not say we should never help a brother or sister with the speck in their eye. He says: “First take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye”. Real help doesn’t come from a attitude of superiority, condescension, or hypocrisy. When we allow God to deal with the heavy timber of our own pride and sin first, our vision clears. We stop approaching others with a hammer and start approaching them with grace, patience, a humble spirit and a genuine desire to restore rather than tear down.
How can you say to your brother, “Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your eye,” when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother’s eye.” Luke 6:42 Imagine sitting at a desk in an exam, turning the paper over and immediately beginning to look around to see if everybody else felt as bad about the first question as you. Then you are startled by the teacher’s exhortation: “Never mind looking at others. Just concentrate on yourself!” Jesus makes a similar point in these verses, using an example to instruct His listeners to deal with their own sin before they attempt to point out the sins of others. The word Jesus uses for “speck” often describes very small bits and pieces of straw or wood. In contrast, the word for “log” refers to a load-bearing beam in a house or structure. If I have a log in my eye, it clearly requires my attention more than a speck in someone else’s does.
As fallen creatures, we often want to think it’s our responsibility to deal with everybody else’s spiritual condition before dealing with our own. Yet Christ hasn’t called us to be preoccupied primarily and initially with the specks of others. No, He says we must be diligent in examining ourselves in light of Scripture and the standard that He has set.
Jesus’ instruction is a great challenge. We may point out the faults of others pretending to be caring about their spiritual condition. But if we have not first been honest about and ruthless with our own sins, that is hypocrisy! We often fall prey to the mistaken notion that if I can find your flaw and deal with you, then I won’t have to deal with my own issues. It’s far easier to tell someone else about their dreadful condition than it is to face our own.
If we truly want to help others, then we must first be prepared to face the dreadfulness of our own hearts
I need some tweezers to remove my specks and big pliers to remove my planks.