KEEP ETERNITY IN FOCUS

KEEP ETERNITY IN FOCUS

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. —II Corinthians 4:16-18

Life in this world surely can be difficult! But this should have us truly consider what is really important and focus on that. “Don’t lose heart.” Knowing God’s Word we should not be surprised that our outer man is “wasting away.” Wow, those are interesting words and yet we know how this happens the older we get. Sometimes we do not even have to get older to really see how the “wasting away” happens. People can get hit with health issues that really cause their bodies to be ravaged physically and that “wasting away” is clearly seen early in life. But the “wasting away” comes to us all.

The financial world has really capitalized on this “wasting away” by selling products that make one appear that they are not “wasting away.” Sixteen billion dollars were spent on plastic surgery in the U.S. in 2016 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2017/04/12/americans-spending-more-than-ever-plastic-surgery/100365258/. Fifty-Five billion was spent on cosmetics in 2014 https://www.cheatsheet.com/personal-finance/how-much-do-we-spend-on-beauty.html/?a=viewall. Much of this is because the market understands the wasting away of the outer person and the fear of people aging in appearance.

For those who know the Lord Jesus Christ we understand the outer man is temporary and we are to be good stewards of our bodies, but not be surprise or fear the “wasting away” of them. What is most important for us is the “inner man.” The “inner man” should be being renewed day by day. We are “transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2). Regardless of the “wasting away” of the outer man, the inner man can continue to be “transformed by the renewing of our minds” for the rest of our lives on this planet! So let us “fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” May we do so!

But as followers of Jesus “our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.” Wow… keep that in focus as we go through difficulties! The difficulties we face now which we are told are “light and momentary”— we are also told they “are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.” Let us keep that in focus as our outer man “wastes away.” Let us focus on the eternal and not the temporal. May it be so. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eiRhcR4Vg10

Dear Father, I am grateful for the hope of eternal glory that will far outweigh any difficulty I go through here. Thank You for making that possible through Jesus. I am grateful.