Nougat 8

Regardless of gender, the human mind focuses on multiple things at the same time; But we select what gets our attention. Today’s Holy Nougat challenges us to ‘see‘ differently.

“We don’t look for things that can be seen but for things that can’t be seen. Things that can be seen are only temporary. But things that can’t be seen last forever.” 2 Corinthians‬ ‭4:18‬ ‭GW‬‬

On what do we place our primary focus? As we chatted last night, primarily about the assassination of Haiti’s president and the latest round of kidnapping in Nigeria, my namesake and I determined that the issue was twofold. A. We are innately selfish people. And B. We are challenged by trusting an unseen God in the face of seen and seemingly concrete trials. While recognizing our mystification at those who are over the edge; it was not hard to recall that we too, have our moments of selfishness and mistrust.

As innately selfish people, we tend to do that which pleases us or which counters fear. We may grumble about it, or identify what we do as the lesser of evils, but even the act of starving our flesh to feed our spirits is still a choice for our long term pleasure. Of a certainty, that isn’t always problematic. It becomes challenging however, when the choices for our pleasure impinge on others’ rights, lives or livelihoods; or are violations of our covenant with God. (Of course that assumes we have a covenant with God. But as reggae artiste Buju Banton once said, we can hide from men but not our consciences …) The challenge for many of us believers is we are more prone to find pleasure in things outside of God’s purposes.

Partly because it is easier to identify with the visible – which we then give undue weight in our lives – than we do with our physically invisible God.

Hard one to swallow.

Consider also the things that move us to fear. Oftentimes, after we create an image in our minds about the fearsome things, we expand on it, based on experience (ours or others), and our fear may create different pleasure priorities. Our minds affect the visible (the image) and shifts our focus, sometimes to the extent that we create demigods of such or of our perceived antidote to what we fear.

And we often find that that is not the ever present albeit invisible God. Paul urges us to take stock of the difference. For, the visible things that stimulate great fear or pleasure don’t last beyond this physical realm. I accept that we are then placing faith in the unseen to secure pleasure in, or in response to fear of the realm of the unseen and unknown future. However I am also convinced that many of us do encounter God in real ways that dares us to deny God’s existence.

If we can see evidentiary proof of God’s existence around us – in nature, in the wonders of science, art and technology; and in each other – in all the tangibles, then we’re well on our way to being open to worshiping God. And for experiencing the eternal by way of our worship.

It is first and foremost a step of faith (that heightens pleasure and conquers fear). And then it becomes a journey toward eternity.

What then do we give primary focus – the visible or the Eternal and Invisible?

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May all we seek be found in Christ