Your Focus

Luke 1: 46 “Mary: My soul lifts up the Lord! 47 My spirit celebrates God, my Liberator! 48 For though I’m God’s humble servant, God has noticed me. Now and forever, I will be considered blessed by all generations” [Voice].

The closing thought from yesterday’s devotion was that Mary’s response to what will scare most of us was to praise God. Mary is teaching us that when you do not know what to do and the situation looks hopeless, look up – lift up your eyes. God, your salvation is here. Sometimes people are unable to relate with the characters in the Bible. So I will share a true story with you today so you will know that it is possible to rejoice even in uncertain situations.

1665 and 1666 AD were the worst years in the history of England. 1665 was the year of the black plague, the plague swept through the country and hundreds of thousands of people died. The following year, 1666 was the year of the great fire of London. The fire wiped out the entire city of London, leaving only one fifth of the city. Two years of back-to-back devastation. A prominent English writer wrote this in his diary, “all around us is death and a snare; I don’t think we will ever be able to recover”.

But there was a man in London who thought they could recover. He was an optimist; he was the bishop of London and his name was Bishop Ken. Rather than focusing on the inadequacy and the things that had gone wrong, he decided to focus on God and to delight in God’s power. He, like Mary, decided to write a song that would cheer up the people of England and take their eyes off the things that kept them in sorrow. The song was an instruction in what to do in times of gloom. “Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him all creatures here below. Praise Him above ye heavenly host. Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost”. We still sing that song till today.

There is no problem that you are facing that is too difficult for God. Instead of sorrowing and worrying about your problem, I want to challenge you to worship God – praise God. Focus on God and watch what will happen. Our lessons from Mary; develop an awareness of God’s Presence, devote yourself to God’s plan, delight in God’s power and depend upon God’s promises. God keeps His promises.

Prayer: Lord God, I ask for the grace to be conscious of your presence, to devote myself to God’s Plan, to delight in God’s power and depend on God’s promises, in Jesus name. Amen!