Psalm 16:8,  “I have set the Lord always before me; Because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.”

The holidays are fast approaching ~ what will your focus be?  For so many there has been a tremendous amount of loss this year.  I know several people who have lost loved ones and the holidays can be tough with that empty seat at the table.  I know only too well, but you still have a choice on who and what you will focus on.  I am by no means making light of the loss of a loved one, it took me years to be able to get back to celebrating Christmas after my Dad passed, so I get it.  He passed away just before Christmas one year and it just made that time of year very difficult.  Looking back, I wish I would have been more God-focused for my children’s sake vs. loss-focused, but hindsight is always 20/20 and well, let’s face it, the loss of a loved one can be overwhelming.  If you have lost someone close to you, maybe you can set aside some family time to honor that person by talking about them and all of the fun times and great memories you had with them.  Go ahead and let the tears flow and allow God to heal your heart year by year.  Allow it to be a time of healing for the whole family.

I love this verse and I know I have used it before, but as we go through life and we face all the things that life throws at us, the only way to stand through it all is to keep The Lord as your focus.  The human tendency is to get angry with God or often people just shut themselves in that pit of despair and shut God and everyone else out thinking that maybe that will make it all go away.  As tempting as that may be, don’t go there. There is always hope and it is found in Him!  The one who loves you and calls you by name sees all that you have faced, are facing and what you will face and He wants to walk with you through it all and heal your wounded heart!  Don’t allow satan to try to deceive you into believing that “God doesn’t care or your life wouldn’t be like it is.”  The reason the world is such a mess is because of satan and his lies.  He wants you to be angry with God and he wants you to feel alone and hopeless.  You have a choice to either draw close to God or to buy satan’s lies, so make the best choice.  God always cares!

We miss out on God’s best so often because we take our eyes off of Him.  I can’t even begin to tell you how many people that are perfect strangers lately that God has put in my path, some in the strangest scenarios, to remind me that God is so good and He is always our answer!  God wants to confirm that for you as well.  

Through my studying lately, I have been reminded of how the Israelites used to live when they weren’t rebelling.  The Jewish Rabbis would sit and discuss and dig deep into the Torah portion of the Word of God (that’s all they had at the time) to search out the meanings of it all.  The Israelites included God in every aspect of life.  He was their main focus, not just on the Sabbath, but all week long, all day, every day and they taught their children about Him continuously.  It was when they would get away from doing that that they went their own ways and would be disciplined by God for their rebellion.  You cannot spend too much time focussing on Him.  You could never learn too much about who He is.  There are a lot of distractions out there so you must be intentional about focussing on Him.  

God wants to share your life with you through the good times and the bad.  Don’t leave Him out.  Is there someone you can reach out to this holiday season who could maybe use some encouragement?  Is there someone you can show the love of God to?  I would encourage you to enjoy this holiday season by keeping your eyes fixed on Him and by asking Him to show you His love for you and to help you see ways to allow that love to flow through you to those around you.

Quote:  “Great strength comes from within, not from without.”  ~ Mark Bowser (That within strength is the Holy Spirit within you, and He will give you the strength you need ~ His best is yet to come!)