Yesterday morning, Ester was making breakfast for her little sister. As I came into the kitchen to thank her for doing so, she paused. A smile lit up her eyes as she shared, “Lily was making a huge deal out of being worried about an ant. She put her face right up next to it and was exclaiming about it. I remarked to her, ‘Well yeah, if you focus on it like that, you make your problem look way bigger than it is.’” Ester concluded, “Immediately, Holy Spirit said to me, ‘Exactly.’”
Daddy God set Ester up for that moment. She has been facing some challenges lately that sometimes seem overwhelming. He gave her a wonderful, living picture to start out her day right. Through Lily and an ant, He reminded her of a vitally important lesson on focus. That is, that zeroing in on our difficulties causes them to grow larger in our perception!
As our verse for today states, our eyes need to instead be focused on God. They are like a lamp that provides light to our whole being… if we point them in the right direction: His direction. The next verse goes on to add, “Be careful, therefore, that the light that is in you is not darkness” (v. 25). In other words, we have responsibility in this matter. We can and should train our focus on the One who holds our lives in His loving, infinitely powerful hands.
What are we going to focus on today? The way we direct our focus will determine how much light we enjoy. Do our problems currently look larger than life? If so, is it possible that we need to shift our focus off of them and onto Jesus? Is it possible than when we do so, we will find that they are only ant-sized after all?
“…[Looking away from all that will distract us and] focusing our eyes on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:2, AMP).
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What have you found is the best way to re-direct your focus to the Lord when problems seem overwhelming?
Feeding On Jesus 
What a great story to share. Thank you.
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You are welcome, Stephen :). And thank you for the comment!
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Reblogged, and commented:
“I love this short post by Jennifer! And the photo is perfect for the subject! Looking at the ant from so close up makes it look so much bigger than it really is.
If we look at our problems that close up, they will seem bigger than they really are, too. Instead, we need to focus on our God, who is far bigger than all of our problems! He is able and willing to carry us through!
“He tends His flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart; He gently leads those that have young.” Isaiah 40:11 NIV”
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Aw, thank you so much, Ruth! This blesses me. And yeah, I was grateful to find a picture that showed the concept really well 🙂
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Thank you for sharing your blessing with us. God knows that sometimes I remember a picture better than an idea, and then the picture helps me remember the concept attached to it. He is so good to help us in whatever ways we we need Him to!
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Yes He is! That is so neat. You must be a visual learner then? I am more of an audio learner, so He makes sure to taylor things to where I will hear them 🙂
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Yes, I am. And He created us with our different learning styles, so He knows exactly how to teach each one of us. Praise God for His loving care!
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Yes, amen! How beautiful is that! 😀
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Thank you Jennifer. x
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🙂 💕😊
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For me, it helps to listen to a good song (Right now I’m listening to “I’m no longer a slave to sin. I am a child of God.” 🙂 ) or better yet, playing and singing one myself, especially if it’s got promises from Scripture in it. 😉
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Looove that song so very much! Amen and amen. I did pick the guitar back up this year, but I have been so busy that it’s challenging to find the time I would like to have to practice. I do sometimes, but am not yet at the place where I can freely worship, playing at the same time. Takes too much focus to play the song right. I look forward to being able to do that in the future 🙂
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I have the same struggle, but when I can get to it … ahhh… ❤
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Smiling at that. I have actually been able to enjoy a few moments of that ahhh, so I get it!
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What a classic example of lighting our true imagination in purified way . The imagination that enlightens our pure soul.
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Yes, Holy Spirit does love to illuminate our imagination with His truth!
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I shared this on Facebook because it is such a great example and reminder that God is infinitely bigger than our obstacles (fears) and what we believe to be hurtles are mere pebbles often times—ants to be crushed.
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Aw, I am SO glad you were blessed by it, Riley! Thank You Jesus! And thank you for sharing it, too 🙂
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Just this past week I had a problem of perspective. Why haven’t I moved closer to publishing books recently? Why have I not recorded any music since the start of the year? Why do I feel stuck in place, or like running in circles back to so near to where I was that it feels like I haven’t moved?
The way to surmount these obstacles isn’t to stare at them, and stare at them, and stare at them, hoping to find the solution. It is to lay them down, leave them with Jesus, and be at peace. Easier said than done for sure, and it doesn’t mean I won’t need to put effort in to achieve these things. But right now, at this moment, spending energy and effort worrying and trying to fix them myself will only end in deep pain and feeling like I’m running in quicksand.
Zoom out. Breathe. Let God carry us.
Thank you so very much for this post. 🧡
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Powerful and vitally important insight and perspective. What an important life discipline, leaving our burdens and concerns with Jesus
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