“I keep my eyes always on the LORD.
With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.”
Psalm 16:8
At first read, How to Not Be Shaken sounds like a title in the self-help section of your local bookstore. You may have even wondered if this week’s Sunday Soaking had taken a turn from scripture.
And then you read the verse. There it is. Truth from God’s Word.
If we want to be the women of God who stand firm in our faith, refuse to allow circumstances to dictate our reality, and who will not be shaken — we need God. We must keep our eyes on Him. Every day. Every moment of every day. Always.
Like most biblical truth, it is profound and seems simple, but is challenging to live out. Johnny Hunt says, “The Christian Life is not difficult … it’s impossible.” Impossible that is, if we try to do it on our own.
A sure way to be shaken:
- Hit the snooze button, sleep late, and jump into the day without your time with Jesus.
- Read the words of your Bible (checking the “daily scripture reading” box) with your mind simultaneously planning breakfast, laundry, and the rest of the day’s To-Do List.
- Complete your Quiet Time, close the book, and then move on to Task Mode with no connection of what you read to the rest of your day.
A woman of faith makes time for Jesus, every day. She does it because she knows she needs Him. She does it because she knows the rest of the day is fruitless apart from Him. She fills up so she is ready to pour out. “Have to” gives way to “want to” — and even “delight to” — as she comes to Jesus because she loves Him and needs Him.
Does that describe you?
Do you want it to?
Are you ready to declare with the Psalmist, “I keep my eyes always on the Lord”?
It’s a daily choice. It’s a conscious decision about who’s in charge. Yesterday’s choice does not cover today. We need fresh manna. Every. Single. Day. Choose Him today. Prioritize time with Him today. And then do it again tomorrow.
Putting Jesus first is a statement of faith — there will be enough time for everything else in my day.
Putting Jesus first is a declaration of His Lordship — He is in charge of my life.
Putting Jesus first is a declaration of my neediness — apart from Him, I’m finished. I cannot do life on my own.
Putting Jesus first claims victory for today — without Jesus, I might as well wave the white flag of defeat before the battle even begins.
Choosing to put my eyes in God’s book first (as I like to tell my ladies at Bible study, “You have no business putting your face on Facebook until you’ve had your face in His book!”) means everything else in my day is seasoned, softened, and saturated by His Spirit living in me and by the truth from His Word. The Spirit of God takes the Word of God and transforms my words, thoughts, actions, and attitudes for the day.
Daily life is transformed. The mundane becomes divine. The ordinary has purpose.
The truth of Psalm 16:8 in the Old Testament is illustrated by Peter in the New Testament (Matthew 14:25-32). Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water. He had His eyes on Jesus and he was walking on the water. But then he looked away – the wind was blowing, he was distracted, and Peter took his eyes off Jesus. That’s when he began to sink. What a metaphor for us! We, too, can do the impossible — serve, give, love, forgive, and yes, refuse to be shaken — so long as we keep our eyes on Jesus.
Paralleling our political freedom to our spiritual freedom, we must reject both the slavery of “legalism” and “liberalism.” We invite you to listen to this week’s teaching lecture as Laura unpacks Paul’s challenge to stand firm in our freedom.
This month’s Write the WORD bookmark and S.O.A.P. study pages,
as well as other free resources to help you balance your heart for God
with the demands of a busy life and home, can be found on our Downloads page.
