Discipline: Eyes on the Road

“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2)

Driver’s Ed can be scary. You ride around for hours in the back seat finding out all of your classmates’ driving flaws. I remember seeing a friend of mine notice something on the side of the road. As his head turned to look at it, he began to turn the wheel in that direction, too. If the instructor hadn’t snapped him out of it, we’d have driven right off the road and straight into what he was focused on.

trail_350Faith racers are kind of like new drivers. We run toward what we’re looking at. So this passage says, “Hey, keep your eyes on the road; look at Jesus!” After all, we’re running his trail. We’re following him. Sometimes, I forget that. I think I’m supposed to take off on my own in search of direction (or I just lose interest in the race). But my purpose in life is to keep following Jesus.

It’s a tough trail. It took Jesus to the pain, agony, and potential shame of the cross. But he kept running. He knew how many of us would be following him. He made it possible for us to follow him until we finish our own race.

What are you looking at today?

Think: How does this racing metaphor help you picture the life of trusting God in a new way?

Pray: Ask God to snap you out of it when you begin to turn your focus away from looking at Jesus and the path he set for you.

Do: Write down three things you sometimes start to focus on instead of Jesus.