Looking beyond

It is said that on one occasion a chick had just hatched, and when it came out, it began to look at everything around it. When he looked to the right, he saw marriages falling apart; when he looked to the left, he saw the youth lost in the corruption of the world; when he looked straight ahead, he saw the abuse against children; when he looked down, he saw that evil was consuming the land. So the chick looked back and saw the shell from which it had come and ran to take refuge in it, as if it did not want to have been born. Many times that is what we do, we lock ourselves in the shell of fear, because we forget to look up, where our hope comes from.

On this day we can ask ourselves, what does it mean to set our sights on things above and not on things on earth? We can answer this question in the following way; Setting your sights on things above and not on things on the earth means that:

# 1. We must focus our vision on spiritual things and not on earthly things.

I am afraid that in this day many lenses have to be adjusted because they have been out of focus looking at the illusory vanities of this world. When we talk about vanities we are talking about something vain, something that has no weight. By looking at things that have no weight, we create anxieties and fears.

# 2. We must look with the eyes of faith and not with physical eyes.

To look at the situations that surround us with the eyes of faith is to look through the lens of God; And although circumstances dictate otherwise, we can be sure of what God has told us. We have to look with God's vision. It will not happen to us like the chick in the illustration.

What is it to set your sights on things above?

1. It is looking beyond what we have in front of us.

2. Look beyond what surrounds us, external circumstances; beyond suffering, obstacles and trials.

3. It is to keep ourselves like Moses, "who remained, as if seeing the invisible one" (Heb. 11:27)

4. It is looking with a spiritual vision. It is having the vision that God wants us to have.

What is vision?

Vision is having the ability to see things as they should be and not necessarily as they are seen in the present moment. Vision has several characteristics:

1. Vision focuses on the future : Vision is not moving the past into the future. If what we are doing in the present moment is good enough for our future, then we have no vision. Only what we have is memories that we try to relive, changing the methods, but doing the same. God wants us to do different things, because we live in a changing society. The Bible has a futuristic focus, which forces us to look further. The Word of God challenges us in such a way that we are forced to develop ourselves, if we want to make a difference in the next generations.

2. Vision is purpose-centered : Our purpose answers the question of why do I exist? The vision formulates a plan of action to carry out that purpose of existence. The purpose never changes, but the vision changes because the needs change.

3. Vision is guided by need : Vision sees the need and moves to fill it. Vision is not haze, it is not a mirage, it is not dreams at night. It grows as needs arise and provides opportunities to make an impact. See needs as opportunities to make a change that affects even future generations. The church needs visionary people, who have learned to look with the eyes of the spirit, through the lens of God, and who dare to meet the needs to make a difference.

4. The vision involves the people : God does the work, but with the people. He does not entrust this work to angels, but to human beings. People are needed with consistency, trustworthy, who know how to face challenges, who release their gifts, who see the need and move in faith to fill it.

The Word of God teaches us that when men and women of God put their gaze on things above, they obtained great blessings and obtained victory; like for example, Moses. Deuteronomy 2: 3 states that God tells Moses that he should go out with the people from that mountain they had been on long ago. They were in the region of Mount Seir. They were comfortably established there. But beyond the mountains they would find a prosperous land, flowing with milk and honey.

Sometimes we find ourselves like this town; stuck in one place, comfortable in one place, in accordance with our way of life, because we dare not launch ourselves to reach new horizons. Perhaps out of fear of the unknown, or out of fear of failure. But God's blessing is flowing in abundance there, in the place where it is disturbing us to move. We just have to raise our eyes and look beyond the mountains. Setting our sights on things above and not on things on earth.

God wants us to learn to look beyond; in things above, in things spiritual, in things that are not seen. May we learn to look with the eyes of faith. That we have a broad vision. May we look beyond the obstacles and see the victory and blessing that awaits us. Let us look at the four cardinal points, as Abraham did; without limits.

God is looking for people with peripheral vision, like the eagle, who can look around, but who also know how to look at the heights, where God is, and look there for the answers to their questions.