Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. (Colossians 3:2)
If anyone struggles with getting distracted, especially in the area of the mind, its me. When doing tasks, usually, I can stay focused, but if I start thinking, my mind can go in a million directions within minutes. I would say I might not have a cluttered house, but can struggle with a cluttered mind. There is so much wisdom in this scripture (and verses around it):
Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. (Colossians 3:1-4)
Colossians 3:2 is a very popular scripture, but what I find so interesting, is what it says after this, which is “When Christ, WHO IS YOUR LIFE, appears…” So basically, the passage is saying, Christ IS our life because as it says in the first verse, we have been raised with Christ, so we set our hearts on things above and not on things of the earth. Does that mean we stick our head in the clouds and be oblivious as to whats going on around us? Certainly not, our focus should be on the unseen (God), then the seen.
When I was sick with lyme disease, it was very, very easy to be distracted about my symptoms that were very real because the dizziness, vision blurriness, weight loss, weakness, fatigue, etc were things going on in my body. If however, I made them my focus, they would get worse, or I would become more depressed because of the condition that wasn’t changing. The focus was on me, me and more me. I had a prophetic word over me by a sister in the Lord in one of the weakest times, and it was simply, “Fix your eyes on Jesus, believe what He says is true, and He rewires your brain”. Very basic, simple instructions that God had already been showing me that I needed to obey. These words were the prescription from Jesus that led to my ultimate physical and emotional healing. The order was essential too: To first and foremost fix our eyes on Jesus. After all, He is the author and perfecter of our faith (Hebrews 12:2). He IS OUR LIFE, as Colossians states. We have died to self, if we proclaim to be followers of Him. Then, it’s to believe what He said is true. So, that is the word of God, or the bible. We believe that is our truth and our guide for a life hidden in Him. Specifically for me, I had to believe that part of the reason He died, was so that I could be whole (or healed) in my body.
Isaiah 53:5, “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes, we are healed.
There are many scriptures on healing and this is just one of them, but I had to believe with all of my heart that this was true, no matter what my body was telling me. Whenever a symptom was strong in my body, I chose to meditate on a scripture that was about healing. Now, this can be for anything really that doesn’t align with the truth of His word. For example, a broken relationship to be restored (forgiveness is always His will). Or, being set free from an addiction whether it’s drugs, or food, or pornography, etc (freedom is always His will). It could also be provision for something He wants us to have (He is always the provider of our needs). It’s focusing on the solution, verses the problem. It isn’t just blindly believing or reciting the bible, but through relationship, knowing His heart and character and spending time with Him where believing the word becomes easy and trials become the test of our faith, where we come out as refined, like it beautifully describes in 1 Peter 1: 3-9:
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
May your faith be proven genuine until the end, by the refiner’s fire, by setting your mind on things above!