Book Reflection: Abide Ch. 1
It is part of human life to go through trial and suffering, but when we come to those seasons of our journey, are we focused on the fog or the sun radiating above?
Roxsan de Vera
Chapter 1: Our Beginning & Our End
Have you ever been caught in the middle of heavy fog where you can’t see anything but what is right in front of you? If we are lifted above the fog, we will find that the sun shines brightly above. This is similar to what we experience in life. It is part of human life to go through trial and suffering, but when we come to those seasons of our journey, are we focused on the fog or the sun radiating above?
In this week’s reflection, we begin reading Abide by Heather Khym, which beautifully highlights the importance of shifting our focus from present challenges to the greater purpose and destination that await us. In Chapter 1, Heather shares her experience of God speaking to her through the fog and how He invites us to lift our eyes so we can shift our earthly mindset to a kingdom mindset.
It is not only about what is going on right now in front of us, but what awaits us at the final destination. We must understand where we are going; the bigger picture and our true purpose, God’s salvation story.
If we know the truth that we were created for love, joy with God, what makes it difficult to truly live like we believe it? When we are in the midst of a difficult moment, where does our mind go? Does it cycle through despair, or does it rise above and stay fixed on Christ? We need to seek and believe God’s truth when we are faced with challenging circumstances.
Scripture is one place we can seek God’s truth and begin seeing the world through His lens. We know from Genesis that Adam and Eve encountered the same human experience that we do: having doubt in who God is and who we are in Him. We may question things when we are uncertain and take matters into our own hands because of our desire for control instead of trusting and surrendering to God.
Even when we doubt God’s goodness and love, He still has a plan to restore us and reconnect us with Him. We can see this similar pattern all over the Old Testament: even when humans are unfaithful and fail, God stays faithful and committed to His covenant with us. God keeps His promises that one day there will be no more suffering or sorrow, and all will be made new in Him. While we are on earth, we can still experience joy, restoration, and a full life now even in the waiting.
“I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us” (Romans 8:18).
We all are going to experience failure and brokenness, but God wants to help us. God seeks us even when we are responsible for getting ourselves lost. As He lovingly called to Adam and Eve, “Where are you?”, He is calling us in our fog and wants to meet us where we are.
“Will we let ourselves be found?” (Heather Khym)
ponder
What are the things in my life that create “the fog,” the things that make it difficult to remember who I am and God’s plan for me?
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