Day 16 - Focus on Jesus

Name: President John Jackson

Scripture:  

"For I have been crucified with Christ, yet I live.  Not I, but Christ lives in me.  And the life I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me." (Galatians 2:20)

Reflections:

Light diffused is of minimal importance.  But light focused can be a laser beam and create huge impact.  Lent focuses my attention.  More important, it focuses my attention on something (someone) that I often find uncomfortably easy to marginalize.  So, here is my Lenten confession:  Easter makes me focus on Jesus.  Sometimes in my life I focus more on the church and the people in it than I do on the Lord of the Church.

There, I said it.  It still does not feel very good.  But I know it is important to get out.  I have come to understand each year that Easter has a purifying place in my life.  The events of the Easter season have always had a centering effect on my faith.  This year, Lent has been helping me prepare for the story of the cross and the resurrection by making me aware of how often I focus on the structure, activities and people of the church (having served as a pastor for over 30 years), and how much I think about myself.  Recently I have become aware that my Christian faith is substantially less Jesus-centered and much more me-centered than I have wanted to admit.  Lent, and this confession, help me re-center my thoughts on Him.

Prayer for the Day:

Lord, thank you for this season that urges us to reflect on Jesus.  Help me to  reflect on His love, His life, His character and His grace.  Please give me the grace to have my faith be more about Jesus and less about myself and other people.