Focus: Is There a Situation Weighing You Down?
How many of you have a sit’iation going on in your life?
Now, I am not talking about a situation, but a sit’iation. The kind of circumstance that is on your last nerve. The sort of thing that when you look at it, you wonder how in the world it will ever work out.
For me, sit’iations usually involve people and relational struggles. However, they most certainly can include external situations, such as finances or health.
Does anyone else know what I am talking about?
A while back, as I was working through a problem, I noticed that I was having trouble sleeping. The kind of sleep, or lack thereof, where I was tossing and turning and eventually ended up wide awake at 4 AM. Now, anytime I am unable to sleep during the early hours of the morning, I know that God is calling me into prayer.
I got out of bed, went to my prayer closet, and began to pray. This burden was so heavy that I woke my husband up to pray with me, even when he should have been sleeping.
As I was praying, the Holy Spirit reminded me of a specific passage of Scripture. So, I pulled out my Bible and began to meditate on Psalms 119:129-133, NKJV:
“Your testimonies are wonderful; Therefore my soul keeps them. The entrance of Your words gives light; It gives understanding to the simple. I opened my mouth and I panted, For I longed for Your commandments. Look upon me and be merciful to me, As your custom is toward those who love Your name. Direct my steps by Your word, And let no iniquity have dominion over me.”
I was so encouraged as I read this passage. These verses reminded me just how important God’s Word is. It truly is the answer for everything.
Focus on God’s Revelation
That morning, I was convicted as I was reading this passage. I heard the Holy Spirit say, “Trina, you are focused on the situation at hand when you should be focused on my Word and revelation.”
There I was, meditating on every word I wanted to say and every action I imagined myself doing to the other person. When instead, I should have been focused on His Word and His actions. I had been relentlessly praying for God to change the other person when I should have been praying that the Lord would give me His Kingdom revelation.
This conviction ushered in a perspective shift, and I began to ask the Holy Spirit to reveal His principles that I should be practicing. This allowed me to seek Him first instead of operating from my own methods and desires to retaliate from my own devices.
I found great comfort in knowing that I was not called to be a judge of anyone else but that I was to continue following Him and doing so by first taking my troubles to God and obeying what He says in His Word.
Focus on God’s Strength
Responding to a situation with a heaven perspective may feel weak or vulnerable. And that is because it is.
The world has taught us that strength is found in winning a fight or retaliating against someone who has harmed you, but that is not the way of the Kingdom of heaven. Our weapons are not harmful words or swords of malice. Our weapon is His presence.
When we turn to the Father in our weakness and despair, He will meet us and exchange those things for His strength and peace. God promises to meet us in our vulnerable and surrendered places.
What do you need to surrender to God today?
Focus on God’s Word
“Prepare before me a path filled with your promises, and don’t allow even one sin to have dominion over me.”
- Psalms 119:133, TPT
I love the imagery of God preparing a path before me filled with His promises! The flourishing greenery around me, a steady path with a clear direction before me.
Isn’t this just what His Word does? It flourishes us as followers of Christ, and it leads us where we should go. However, unless we are intentional about knowing His Word, we won’t understand His promises for us.
I have many beloved friends who are incredible authors of timely and essential topics. But if we are more caught up in reading the next personal development book before going to God’s faithful and infallible Word, we may experience shallow growth and understanding. So, let’s be intentional about spending time in His personal development book – the Bible.
Sister, reading His Word daily is essential. It provides healing, understanding, growth and challenges us to action.
My prayer for you today is that you would cry out to God and ask for a new revelation of His pathway full of promises. I pray that you would find margin to be in His Word so that you could do the Word. I pray that He would speak to you in the hard places. I pray that you would rise in strength and beauty as you exchange your hurts for His peace.
Let’s recalibrate our focus and release the weight of our burdens to Him.