“I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways. I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word” – Psalm 119:15-16
One of the most rewarding and most consistent ways I’ve been able to stay in touch with my girls during this time has been completing devotionals together on YouVersion’s Bible App. Each day, once we’ve completed the devotional content and scripture reading, there’s a discussion feature that enables us to engage with one another and share what we’re learning. It has been so refreshing to have not only extended the invitation and have them respond, but for them to be so actively excited about choosing devotionals for the group, diving into God’s word, and growing together. It’s a time of rest and encouragement that I look forward to daily in the midst of the surprising level of chaos there still is in this relatively still world we’re currently living in.
When I sat down on Sunday evening to go through a devotional with some of our 7th-grade ladies, I came across a sentence that made me pause. It’s stuck with me since then, and I think it’s something I’ll remember for a long time. The devotion itself was about fixing our eyes on Jesus as our hope and sustainer, and the sentence that jarred me was so simple, but it was powerful. It read, “It matters what we look at because we become what we behold.” Wow! I thought, “What a relevant truth for what we’re going through right now.”
In the chaos of what’s happening around us, it may be easy to fix our eyes on the negativity of the media. In the boredom you may be facing if you’re stuck at home, it may be easy to fix your eyes on social media, the television, or all the things that “should” be. If you’re an essential worker during this time, your focus may be frustration, fear, or just plain exhaustion. Whatever your situation may be right now, I’d like you to ask yourself, “How is what I’m experiencing or beholding influencing who I’m becoming during this time?”
The author who penned the words you just read from Psalm 119 is unnamed, but one thing is abundantly clear as you read the chapter: he is consumed by the Word of God. More than that, he adores the God of the Word! He makes it his life’s mission to behold God and the things of Him alone. It dictates everything he does and makes him who he is. As he spent his efforts and energy beholding God, I imagine it was more effortless to become more like Him. This thought begs another question: “Am I beholding God in such a way that is making me become more like him?”
My hope and prayer for us all is that we’re taking this opportunity to more intently behold Christ so that we can become more like Him and reflect his gospel and His glory to the world.
Pursuing Him Together,
Madison Wolfe
Girls Ministry Director and Student Ministry Admin